


Irresistible Chemistry

by GoldsJRZGirl



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Auror Sirius Black, Bullying, Child Abuse, Dysfunctional Family, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Evil Lucius Malfoy, F/M, Family Drama, First War with Voldemort, Good Severus Snape, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Lily Evans Potter & Severus Snape Friendship, Lily Evans Seer, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Minor Character Death, Nice Petunia Evans Dursley, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Professor Severus Snape - Freeform, Prophecy, Remus Lupin & James Potter Friendship, Severus Snape Has a Heart, Sirius Black & James Potter Friendship, Slow Romance, Spy Lily Evans, Spy Regulus Black, Spy Severus Snape, Young Lily Evans Potter, Young Severus Snape, abusive Tobias
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-14 06:41:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 94,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29663304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldsJRZGirl/pseuds/GoldsJRZGirl
Summary: There's a fine line between acceptance and ostracism in the wizarding world--or the Muggle one. But sometimes you have to break all the rules and find your own truth. It'll never work, they said. Wizard and Muggle, Slytherin and Gryffindor. Pureblood and blood traitor. Yet sometimes the irresistible chemistry of the heart overrides everything.Severus Snape and Lily Evans were next door neighbors and best friends, until they went to Hogwarts, where arrogant pureblood James Potter set his sights on Lily. But Lily, heir to a Seer's Gift, was staunchly loyal and slowly growing to have feelings for her best friend, who also was drawn to the fiery witch who shared his love of potions and understanding of his awful home life.But James was used to getting what he wanted, and he thought he wanted Lily . . . until an incident that almost spelled disaster for him and his friends, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew--showed him that maybe what he really wanted was someone who truly wanted to be part of his world, yet never could be--Muggle Petunia Evans.An unusual Harry Potter Marauders era and beyond romantic tale.
Relationships: Eileen Prince/Original Male Character(s), Eileen Prince/Tobias Snape, Lily Evans Potter/Severus Snape, Petunia Evans Dursley/James Potter, Regulus Black/Original Female Character(s), Sirius Black/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 118
Kudos: 42





	1. The Unsuitable Friend

**Part One**

**The Slytherin Spy and the Gryffindor Lady**

**1**

**The Unsuitable Friend**

_June, 1971_

_15 Spinner's End, Yorkshire_

Severus Snape stood on the doorstep of the Evans' neatly swept porch and gazed out at their beautifully manicured lawn with a slight pang of envy. His own yard, two houses down, never looked this good, though he did try and mow it as best he could, but he was slight and scrawny for his ten years and the push mower was horribly awkward and heavy. End result, he sometimes cut the grass unevenly and the yard looked like a goat had been grazing in a drunken stupor upon it. Not to mention the fact that half of Snape's lawn was brown since the utility company had shut off the water again since his father Tobias was late paying them. It was one of the hottest summers anyone could remember in the North Country, unnaturally so, the oldsters said. Everything was drooping and dying, and Severus felt as if he were wilting in the heat. No one knew what was causing it, the weather bureau was stumped, and everyone just had to put up with it.

He shifted his foot slightly, his trainers were worn and holey, and the rest of his clothes weren't much better, ever since Tobias had lost his job at the cotton mill years ago and turned to the bottle, they hadn't had money for "extras" like new sneakers or much of anything else. The skinny boy huffed and tossed his stringy hair out of his eyes, which were dark as coal, and he pressed the button for the doorbell again.

 _I hope Lily's at home, I'm so thirsty, it's like boiling hot out today and there's no sign of a breeze. Good thing Mum can use cooling spells at night and at least make the faucet run water for the bathroom._ Otherwise they'd be in dire straits and Severus already put up with people calling him a scummy ragpicker, he didn't need them to say he smelled on top of it.

He took another longing glance at the Evans' yard, with its large poplar tree and pretty walk with flowers along it and wished he could live here, it was so much nicer than his own rundown, dingy, dilapidated home. Most of the houses on Spinner's End were old row houses, built when the cotton mills had first opened over twenty years ago, but the Evans had fixed their place up, unlike so many of their neighbors, who didn't have the means. Henry Evans was the local pharmacist in the town of High Bentham, which had once been known for its weaving. But since the mill shutdown, the workers had been frequenting the pubs, as Severus knew quite well, since Tobias frequented the Black Bull most often.

He wiped a hand across his forehead and thought about pressing the bell again, but just then the door was flung open and Petunia Evans, who was thirteen that summer, stuck her blond head out and sneered, "You again, Snape? Why don't you go and chase some parked cars, instead of bothering us?"

"Why don't you?" he responded quickly, putting a sharp sneer reminiscent of his father on his face. He and Petunia had never really gotten along, she regarded him as odd and freaky because he, like her younger sister, was heir to magic's gift. "Where's Lily?"

"Just finishing lunch, why? Come to beg for a handout again, Snape?"

Severus felt his jaw clench. He hated the way Petunia mocked him for being the son of one of the town drunks and as such, never had enough to eat. His stomach was growling, it had only had a small slice of bread with a scraping of butter and some milk since six in the morning. His mouth watered at the heavenly aroma coming from the kitchen, but he just glared at Petunia, too proud to admit he was starving again.

"Tuney? Who's at the door?" Lily's voice floated out from the kitchen.

"Nobody," Petunia said spitefully.

"Hello, Lily!" Severus called, loud enough to be heard over the variety show Mrs. Evans had blaring in the den.

"Sev? Is that you?" Lily suddenly appeared behind her sister, she was small for her age as well, like Severus. "Come on in." She nudged Petunia out of the way and Severus came inside. "Would you like some lunch, Sev? Mum just made a shepherd's pie and it's really good."

Severus hesitated, but the aroma was irresistible and he nodded slowly.

"Lily, we aren't running a charity here," began Petunia petulantly.

"Oh, be quiet, Tuney! Sev's my friend, and he can eat here whenever he likes, same as Abby and Vern do."

Severus trailed Lily into the kitchen, a warm room done in cheery yellow and white with sunflowers painted on the walls. Patricia Evans, or Polly as she preferred to be called, had a thing for gardening and flowers. "Like I'd want to eat at the same table as that hog, Dursley," remarked Severus. "By the time he was done, there'd be nothing left."

Lily bit back a giggle, for Vernon was known for his hearty appetite.

Petunia got all hissy, however, and snapped, "Well, at least _my_ friends are respectable, instead of being weird nerdy brats, totally unsuitable to associate with normal people."

"Hey! Sev isn't weird or freaky, Tuney! I've got the same magic gift he does." Lily objected, before Severus could reply to her taunts with a stinging remark of his own. "Ignore her, Sev. She's in a snit because Vernon hasn't called her yet to take her out to the movies."

"Shut up, Lily!" Petunia was now quite red. "You always think you know everything. Seeing Snape over here is enough to ruin anybody's mood."

"With your attitude, Pinch Face, I'm surprised you could even get a date," Severus shot back.

"Humph! Like you can talk, you sly snarky—" before Petunia could finish her sentence, the phone rang and she scurried off to get it, it was on a stand next to the stairs in the hall. "Oh, hello, Vern!" she cooed. "When's the next show? Two? Okay, I'll ask Mum if she can drop me off, the heat's dreadful for walking . . ."

Severus mouthed a _thank God_ to Lily before she handed him a plate with some still steaming shepherd's pie and a fork, as well as a glass of iced lemonade. "Thanks, Lil. Mum had to work late again and didn't have time to go to the store."

He began to eat, slowly, so he wouldn't burn his tongue. The pie tasted as good as it smelled, and he savored it.

Lily nibbled on a shortbread as she waited, eyeing her friend in concern. Severus looked even more wan and hungry than usual, and there was a darkening bruise on his left arm. Her lips tightened. _His father's been at him again, I'll bet, the rotten bounder._

"Sev, what happened to your arm?"

"Nothing. Just banged it, is all," he replied, not looking at her.

"Banged into your father."

Severus nearly choked. "Lily, please. Leave it go."

"Sev, he shouldn't . . .you shouldn't be putting up with it . . ."

He stopped eating and said softly, "And what am I supposed to do about it?"

"Tell someone, like a police officer. So they can arrest his arse."

But Severus shook his head. "Can't. My mother would never forgive me. B'sides, he'd just say it was 'cause of my smart mouth and who do you think they'll believe, me or him?"

"You! Everyone knows he's a drunk, Sev."

Snape shrugged. "Like it'd matter. Half of them drink too, and what d'you think they do to their kids, huh? I've seen your dad give you a wallop once, Lily, for acting smart with him."

"But he never left marks on me, Sev! And it barely stung," she argued softly. "Not like that."

"It's not as bad as it looks." He resumed eating.

"Liar. I don't know how you can stand going home sometimes."

Severus didn't answer, though he wondered that too. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. In two months I'll be gone from here anyhow, and so will you. Did you get your letter yet?"

She nodded, grinning. "Just yesterday. You?"

He patted his pocket. The parchment crackled and he smiled too. That letter was the best thing that had ever happened to him. It was his ticket out of his hellish home and to a brighter future. "It's right here. Mum says she'll take us to Diagon Alley the week before school and help us get our supplies. I can't wait."

"Me either. My parents were so happy. Only Tuney wasn't."

"Sour grapes."

"Maybe. Only somehow . . .I got the feeling that she wished she could come with me."

Severus laughed. "Petunia? But she hates us because we can do magic."

"No, not hate, Sev. She's jealous, I think." Lily disagreed.

Severus continued eating. He didn't care what Petunia's problem was, he just wished the older girl would leave them alone.

"But . . .I am a little nervous," the red-haired girl whispered. "I've never been away from home before. What if . . .what if nobody likes me?"

"I like you." Severus replied. "So you'll always have me for a friend. Besides, Evans, what's not to like? No one will make fun of you at Hogwarts, we're all witches and wizards there."

"I know, but . . .you said not all witches had the Sight like me." Lily bit her lip nervously. She sometimes could see certain small events in still water or dreams.

"It's not a bad thing, Lil. Have you Seen something lately?"

She shook her head. "No. It never comes when I want it to. It does whatever it pleases."

"Hmm. Maybe the teachers can help you with it," Severus mused.

They could hear Petunia asking Polly if she could go to the cinema with Vernon and squealing when her mother agreed. Then they heard her running out the door.

Both children breathed a sigh of relief. Severus finished his slice of pie and thanked Lily again. He too was rather nervous about attending Hogwarts, because he was too smart and did not make friends easily. But perhaps it would be different there, and Merlin alone knew it had to be better than what he had back home.

He rose quietly and rinsed off his plate and fork in the sink and then said, "Come on, Lily. Let's go by the treehouse, I've got a new recipe to show you."

Lily's eyes lit with eagerness. "A potions recipe?"

"Of course!" he chuckled. "Mum says she'll give us a lesson this Saturday, but I like to study them first."

Lily practically raced out the curtained back door to the large treehouse her father had built several years past for her and Petunia to play in. Petunia hardly used it anymore, she considered herself too old for such things, and so Lily and Severus regarded it as their own private place.

Once they had climbed inside using a rope ladder, and were sitting on some old faded bolsters, Severus pulled the potions recipe from his other pocket and showed it to Lily.

Written in Eileen's neat handwriting was the following recipe:

_Bascombe's Bruise Balm_

_4 oz. olive oil_

_1/2 oz. arnica oil_

_1/2 oz. calendula oil_

_2 strands unicorn hair_

_1 oz. white beeswax pellets_

_1/2 oz. comfrey root powder_

_1/2 oz. licorice root powder_

_1/4 oz. lavender essential oil_

_1/4 oz. geranium essential oil_

_Snake scales, chopped fine_

"Do you have all the ingredients, Sev?" Lily asked, listening as he read them aloud.

"Yes. Mum always keeps her lab well-stocked, since she's a Potions Mistress. This is an elementary healing salve." He began to read the directions and Lily tried to memorize them.

When they had each looked at the recipe for fifteen minutes, he covered it up and began to quiz her on each kind of ingredient. This was how they always studied for their potions class with Eileen, which was something both of them enjoyed and seemed to have a knack for.

Once they had both memorized the recipe, Severus set it aside. "See? That wasn't too hard, right?"

"No. Not with you giving me hints." Lily smiled. "I hope we're in the same House, Sev. So we can study together and stuff like always."

"Yes. But even if we're not, it won't matter, right?" he asked, though he prayed it wouldn't come to that. Lily just had to be Sorted into the same House. "You'll still be my friend, won't you?" There was a note of desperation in his voice then, though he struggled to hide it.

"Always, Sev. Promise on my honor," Lily reassured him, then she made the sign of the circle over her heart and slapped her palm down on his to seal the pact. "Don't know what I'd do without you, Sev."

"Same here," he murmured. Lily was the best thing to move into Spinner's End ever, and Severus loved having a magical friend to play with and discuss things he was normally forbidden to talk about, especially when his father was home. "Friends forever."

Little did they know that their childish vow would be tested cruelly in years to come, for nothing is gained without a cost, but right then the two friends were too intent upon discussing possible wand types and House traits to worry about the future.


	2. House Rivalries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus and Lily are Sorted and they meet two of the future Marauders

It was two months into the first term and Severus would have been blissfully content with his time at Hogwarts if not for two things. The first was that Lily and he had been Sorted into different Houses, and not only that, but rival ones. The Hat had placed his best friend in Gryffindor, much to his dismay, while sending him to Slytherin, explaining that he had a great destiny to fulfill there.

Right then, Severus could have cared less about any 'great destiny', all he knew was that being Sorted into a rival House was going to present problems for his friendship. Lily didn't understand how deep the bitterness and rivalry ran between the two Houses since the rise of Voldemort, or You-Know-Who, as most called him, terrified to utter his name lest he hear and come to wreak vengeance. Voldemort had been a Slytherin, as had many of his followers. And his subversisve teachings had spread to many of those Sorted into the house of the serpents, until all Slytherins were tarred with the same brush—they were known to be ambitious, cruel, untrustworthy, and had a predilection for Dark magic.

When Severus had been Sorted, there had been a handsome dark-haired boy sitting at the Gryffindor table who had cried, "Oy, I'd figured him for a snake, he looks the type, all scrawny and sly and I'll bet he knows loads of Dark curses. They all do."

A messy-haired boy with glasses next to him nodded in agreement. "Nothing good ever comes out of Slytherin, that's for sure, Sirius."

Severus had felt himself stiffen instinctively at the remarks, but he forced himself to ignore them. They were such fools, what did they know? He knew barely anything about curses, except which ones were Unforgivables, his mother had been a Potions Mistress and had only taught him elementary potions and healing charms, mostly so he could hide the damage Tobias did to him from school authorities. _Healing charms and glamours, that's all I know, you dumb prat. And if that's dark magic, I'll eat my robes. Oh, Lily, why in Merlin's name did you have to end up there? You're so much smarter than half of them._

His new Housemates had welcomed him with a few handshakes and quiet hellos, Slytherins were nothing if not dignified.

But he vowed that nothing would get in the way of his friendship with Lily Evans. He had promised he would be her friend forever, and he always kept his promises. Eileen had taught him that a wizard's word was his bond, and to never promise something he could not keep.

Unfortunately, that promise was going to be the devil to keep.

That evening he was meeting Lily at the library, which was a kind of neutral ground, so they could study together for their upcoming end of term finals. The tests weren't until just before the Christmas break, but both Severus and Lily believed in studying as much as possible beforehand, and while both were acing their potions class and transfiguration, Severus was having trouble with certain aspects of Charms and Lily needed help with Herbology, she couldn't grasp all the magical plant properties. Severus had grown up with them, thanks to his mother, and he knew that area very well. Lily had asked if he could tutor her and he had agreed. She seemed to have an aptitude for Charms and he was grateful for it, since he hated looking ignorant, and he didn't trust the older Slytherins to help him and not make fun of him.

He'd already been told off by fourth-year Lucius Malfoy for associating with a Gryffindor chick. "That's just not done, Snape. That House is the enemy, they've got too many Mudbloods in there, now quit seeing that Evans girl or else. Understand me?"

Severus had just dropped his eyes and given a quick nod, like he did when Tobias asked him a question. But inside he was seething. _Who the hell do you think you are, Malfoy, telling me who I can and can't see? You're not my bloody father!_

Still, he had not liked the glint in the other boy's eye when he had threatened him, it reminded him too much of Tobias, and so he had resolved to give Malfoy the slip, and act like he was obeying the older boy, then see Lily whenever he had the chance in secret. He had sent her a note to that effect, and so they were meeting in the library.

He slipped around a huge bookshelf in the back of the library, where almost no students went, and discovered Lily waiting for him as promised, carrying a small Lumos-spelled lamp and her bookbag. "Hi, Sev! You all right?"

"Fine. You?"

"Better, now that you're here. I can't believe we have to do this. It's . . it's ridiculous."

He sighed. "That's House politics for you. Forget about it for now, Lily. Let's just concentrate on our lessons."

But Lily's emerald eyes were narrowed and she said, "Did that Malfoy threaten you, Severus?"

Severus did not answer, instead getting out his books and parchment, which was in itself an answer.

"Bloody tyrant! How dare he?" Lily hissed angrily.

Severus stared at her. "Lily Anne Evans! What would your mum say?"

She blushed slightly. "That a lady shouldn't swear, probably. But I can't help it. What's so bad about you and I being friends? I don't understand. This whole rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor is stupid. You're not a dark wizard and you never will be."

"I know. And I could give a damn that you're a Muggleborn," he replied, smiling. "The others in my House don't even know I'm a half-blood." He sighed. "They'd not be very happy if they knew."

"Who cares? You're worth ten of them, the bigots."

Her words warmed him to the core of his soul. Lily was the one constant he had, the one who understood him best, and would never abandon him. "You and I know that, but they'd make my life hell if they ever knew, so please, Lily, keep it secret."

"Don't worry, Sev. I'm no blabbermouth." She took out her Herbology notes. "Okay, now here's where I have problems. I don't understand why a magical snapdragon is so photosensitive, when the ordinary one isn't . . ."

Severus carefully explained the properties of _magica antirrhinum majus_ , and Lily listened intently and took notes.

They spent a pleasant two hours together, dark and red heads bent over their texts, speaking quietly, and scribbling with their quills in their notebooks. They were yawning by then and Lily said it was probably time to call it a night, before they risked being caught out after curfew.

They quickly packed up their things and left the library, giving Madam Pince a respectful nod as they went by. The librarian sniffed and gave them a small smile. "At least you two know that a library is for studying, not acting like hoodlums, like the three I just tossed out of here."

"Good night, Madam Pince," Lily said, and gave her a wave before walking out the door.

"Would you like me to walk you back to the Tower, Lil?" asked Severus, he was wary of letting Lily go back alone at night, the castle was big, and he didn't trust some of the students in his House.

Before Lily could reply, someone else did. "Now why would she let a snake like you walk her home, when she's got perfectly good mates like us?"

The two looked up, startled, to see James Potter standing there, wearing his familiar infuriating grin, and next to him was Sirius Black and the skinny, pale, sharp-faced Peter Pettigrew, hovering just behind the other bigger boys.

"No thanks," Lily said firmly, she did not like Potter's attitude at all, he was arrogant and thought he was all that. "Come on, Severus. It's getting late."

But when she went to go around them and up the corridor, Sirius put out an arm to halt her. "Evans, don't you get it? You shouldn't be with that slimy dungeon crawler. He could give you fleas or worse." He leveled a glare at Severus. "Keep away from her, Snivellus."

"Bugger off, Black! I'll do what I please," Severus answered, his black eyes flashing.

"Not so long as we're around, Snape," James put in, grabbing Severus by the arm. "Go crawl back to the dungeons, greaseball, where you belong."

"Shut up, all of you!" Lily cried, shoving at Sirius's arm. "Leave us alone! Who do you think you are, Potter, talking like that about him, you arrogant twit?"

James craned his head around to stare at Lily in astonishment. Usually girls never spoke like that to him. "Evans, stay out of this. I'm defending your honor."

Lily exploded. "Defending my honor, are you? Well, Sir Galahad, for your information, I don't _need_ my honor defended! I can take care of myself, I'm not some helpless lady in a tale! Now quit pestering us and go away, before I really lose my temper and hex your bloody mouth shut!"

"Ooh, James, she's got some temper!" snickered Pettigrew in his squeaky voice. "Be careful, Potter."

Furious, Lily drew her wand and pointed it at Peter. "You were saying, Pettigrew?"

Peter gulped and backed away and hid behind Sirius.

Sirius grinned at Lily, not taking her seriously. "Evans, put it away. You wouldn't hurt us, we're your Housemates."

"You're a bunch of interfering, nosy, blithering idiots is what you are!" Lily declared hotly.

"Now, Evans, that's not nice. Where'd you hear such words, from the scummy Slyth here?" James drawled. "Been telling tales about us, huh, Snivellus? Naughty little serpent. I just might have to teach you a lesson."

"About what, Potter? How to get detention in two days or less?" sneered Severus. "Because that's the only thing you know how to do, get in trouble." In the two months they had been at Hogwarts, James, Sirius, Pettigrew, and their other friend, Lupin, had earned themselves detention almost every week for pranks on students, teachers, and being insolent to professors, as well as forgetting to do homework.

"At least I'm not a Dark Arts sympathizer like you, Snape! Plan on joining You-Know-Who someday?"

"No, Potter! Now get out of my way."

"Make me, Snivellus. Or are you too much of a coward to face a real wizard?"

That did it. Severus could ignore everything but that. Before James could move, Severus had drawn his fist back and hit the sneering boy right in the eye. There was a crunch as James's glasses cracked.

"Ow! You little bastard!" howled James, holding his glasses with one hand and swinging his fist at Severus with the other.

Severus ducked. If there was one thing he knew how to do, it was defend himself. He'd gotten into scraps before at primary school, and had learned how to hold his own in a fistfight. Something which he doubted Potter had ever learned.

To his astonishment, James discovered that though small, Snape could pack a pretty good wallop, and he wasn't used to fighting with his fists, he rarely had to defend himself physically. He found himself getting the worst of it, Severus was like a small whirlwind, hitting and kicking like a dervish.

Angry and embarrassed at being shown up in front of a girl, James managed at last to grab Severus by the collar of his robes and throw him backwards into the wall.

Severus hit the wall hard, hitting his head against the stone and nearly getting knocked out. He blinked woozily, his head was spinning.

"Bloody snake! I'll teach you!" he heard Potter growl and felt something slam into his nose.

He cried out as he felt something snap beneath Potter's fist.

"Get off him, you rotten bully!" yelled Lily.

He was blinded by pain and blood was dripping down into his mouth, but he could still hear Potter yelp loudly through the throbbing in his head.

"Oww! Merlin, Evans, you want to unman me?"

Severus opened his eyes a slit and saw Potter clutching his family jewels.

He managed a crooked grin. _Kick him where it counts, Lily. That's where his brains are._

Suddenly Sirius hissed, "Somebody's coming, James! Quick, let's get out of here!"

They scattered, and Severus felt Lily kneel down next to him. "Sev? Are you all right? God, you're a mess, blood all over." He felt her dab his face with a soft cloth.

"It's okay, Lil," he managed after a moment. "I've had worse."

"Shhh." She tilted her head and heard the distinct sound of footsteps. Black had been right, there was someone coming. "C'mon, Sev. Can you walk?"

He felt her put her arm about him and he climbed to his feet. "We got t'hide. Don' wanna get d'tention," he hissed, finding it difficult to talk through his broken nose.

"Why? They started it, the rotten—" she began angrily.

"Don' matter. No one'll ever believe me," he told her.

He had already seen how some of the staff seemed to favor the Gryffindors over the Slytherins, and whenever there was a fight between members of those Houses, usually the Slytherins got the blame and punishments. But that was nothing new. Once, long ago he had actually told the truth when a teacher had asked why he had bruises on his legs, and when Tobias discovered it, he had told the teacher he lied. "Kid's got some imagination. Always making up stories. He was playing about near the mill and fell. Right, Sev?" and Tobias had given him a look that made his bowels turn to water. He had agreed, and the teacher had believed his slick talking father and dismissed his accusation as the rambling of an attention-seeking child.

He shuddered as he recalled how Tobias had beaten him for daring to speak the truth. And from that day on, he told no one what went on in the Snape house, save for Lily. He had learned the hard way that no adult would believe a word he said.

At his urging, Lily dragged him back into the library, and they hid in the shadows until the footsteps went by. Then, Lily peered out and made sure the coast was clear before assisting Severus to the Hospital Wing over his protests.

Luckily, Madam Pomfrey did not ask too many questions before she healed him, then sent them on their way.

But from then on, Severus was mortal enemies with Potter and his gang.


	3. A Helping Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SEv gives a fellow student a helping hand

**September 1972:**

**Hogwarts**

"You okay, Sev?" Lily asked in concern as her friend sat opposite her in their compartment. He looked drawn and exhausted, there were dark circles under his eyes and she saw him suppress a wince as he leaned back on the seat. _Tobias,_ she thought grimly. Though she had only met the man once, and then for about two minutes, she had instinctively disliked him. Knowing about his drunken binges and how he tended to hurt both his wife and son during them made her dislike him even more. She knew as well that Severus hated him and was also afraid of him, though he had never admitted as much to her. He never did. When he was hurt he tended to hide away somewhere inside of himself, and she had learned years ago to read him as much from what he didn't say as from what he did.

"Fine. I'm just . . .tired." He stretched out on the seat opposite her, curling up on his side.

"Why don't you take a little nap then?" she suggested quietly, knowing he was hurting and more than just a "little" tired.

He gave her a lopsided smirk. "Y'sound like my mother."

"Good. Then maybe you'll listen to me for once, Severus Snape," she said, half-scolding. She placed a blanket over him, the Express provided two for each compartment, like they did on the sleeper cars on Muggle trains.

"Yeah, right," he snorted, but then he closed his eyes and drifted off, despite the stinging pain in his bottom and thighs. Tobias had come home sozzled, as usual, and gotten mad when he had seen Severus's trunk downstairs, he hated it that his son had inherited magic and didn't take after him, the way he should have. That fact alone made Severus deserving of a beating, according to Tobias.

But he buried his father's voice in the depths of his mind, locking it in a box along with all the other awful memories, and as he slipped into the warm embrace of sleep he felt a small hand brush his hair away from his forehead.

Lily gently smoothed her friend's unruly hair away from his forehead. He really needed a haircut, his hair was always in his eyes. Unless he wore it like that on purpose, it was the fashion these days to have long hair. But she doubted if Sev followed popular styles. _He probably couldn't afford it, you know he's always been hard up, Lily,_ she told herself. _And it's another way for him to hide. Hide from his father and from everyone. Except me._

She shook her head and went back to sit down opposite him, her green eyes filled with tears. She hated that he was so wary and hurting all the time, and she wished he would get help, but he insisted going to any adult authority was a waste of time. _Oh, Sev. I wish I could help you more. I'd tell someone, but then you'd never forgive me, and I promised upon my magic to never tell. But I hate seeing you hurt. I hope Potter and the rest of them leave you alone this year, the damn bullying toerags!_ She sighed, and took out her Charms text, they still had several hours before the train arrived at school. _Maybe you need another friend, someone besides me, that you could talk to. A boy. You'd probably tell him things you wouldn't me._

But who could she find that would be able to get past Severus's initial reserve and sometimes sharp tongue? All the Gryffindor boys she knew in her year were rabidly prejudiced against Slytherins and she didn't know how Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff felt about Slytherins. As for his own House . . .she knew he hardly trusted anyone, because he was a half-blood and most of them believed in pureblood supremacy.

And yet, she knew he needed another besides herself, knew it instinctively, the way she knew how to move her wand to cast a Charm spell correctly. _You'd tell me you didn't need anyone, of course. That you manage just fine by yourself, that I'm the only friend you'll ever need. But I know it's not so, I've seen how you look at Potter and his friends sometimes, when you think no one can see . . .and I can see how much you want that sort of thing . . .another boy to talk to . . ._

Just then there came a knock at the door of her compartment and the door slid open to reveal Alice Stewart, a tall blond with a round face and cheerful hazel eyes, and Cynthia Graves, both Gryffindors in her year. Cindy was shorter than Alice and had her blond hair cut short in a bob and a rather pointed face.

"Hey, Lil. How was your summer?" asked Alice.

"Good, how about you?"

"Fine. You want to play Exploding Snap with us?"

Lily hesitated, not really wanting to leave Severus alone. The Marauders were on the train too and if they happened to see him asleep . . .

"Who's that?" Cindy asked, peering into the compartment. She wrinkled her nose when she saw who it was. "Snape? What's he doing in here?"

"Sleeping," Lily answered shortly. She walked out of the compartment and quickly cast a locking charm on the door, so no one could get in and bother Severus.

"How can you stand to be around him, Lily?" Cindy asked. "He's a slimy snake."

Lily glared at her. "You wouldn't understand, Graves. Because all you see is a Slytherin badge and not what's beneath it."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" squealed the other girl. "Evans, you haven't been like . . _.doing_ anything with Snape, have you?"

Alice hushed her and they continued down two compartments to where the girls had set up the card game and also had bought butterbeers and pumpkin pasties from the trolley.

Alice quickly shut the door and went to sit down at the little table, which was a piece of wood that folded up when you weren't using it. "Cindy, you should watch your mouth," she scolded. "You wouldn't want to start any rumors."

The other girl giggled and Lily scowled at her. "But Alice, could you _imagine_ . . . kissing Snape? I've heard he knows scores of Dark curses, that's why he so pasty and greasy, from casting dark magic."

"Don't be an idiot, Cindy," Lily snapped. "Severus is no more a Dark wizard than I am. And he's _not_ greasy, he just needs a haircut. He's brilliant and sweet and I'd . . .I'd kiss him if he asked me to!" she blurted before she could think better of it.

Both girls gasped.

"Lily, you really would?" Alice repeated, her eyes wide.

"Yes!"

"But why kiss a Slytherin when you could kiss James Potter?" Cindy asked, sighed dreamily. "I hear he has a thing for you, Evans. And he's totally hot."

Lily sniffed. "He's also a totally arrogant toerag, and I'm not becoming one of his string. You can if you want though, Cindy. Though I honestly don't know why you'd want to. He only cares about playing pranks and he's full of himself."

"But Lily, he's so dreamy! His eyes, and his face . . .ooh! I'd let him kiss me till I passed out. Or his friend Sirius. There's another knockout. If I could ever get them to notice me."

"Fall at their feet and promise to worship them," Lily said sarcastically. "They'll notice you for sure then. They like girls who are in need of rescuing, so pretend you turned your ankle or something."

"Really? I'll have to try that," the other laughed.

Lily rolled her eyes. "I was kidding, Graves. They only do that stuff in Jane Austen novels."

"Who's that?"

"Muggle author. Wrote Victorian romance novels." _Potter's a shallow, immature, spoiled brat. But if you like that kind of bloke . . .Severus is worth ten of him, only you'll never see it._ She bit back a sigh. Sometimes it was a major pain in the arse, being so intuitive. It was a side-effect of her Sight, this odd knowing about another's inner character. But she never disregarded it. Then she sat down next to Alice and said, "Okay, who's dealing?"

Severus woke up, feeling marginally better for his nap, only to find the compartment empty. He moved stiffly, wincing as he sat up. The nap had done some good, he didn't feel like a walking zombie, but it had also given his bruises and welts time to stiffen and now they ached like ten thousand hells.

But his first thought wasn't of himself, it was of Lily. Where was she?

He glanced at his watch, discovering it was three hours later, and the train was almost pulling into the Hogwarts station. He knew she was still here, there was her Charms text on the seat next to her trunk. Maybe she had gone to use the bathroom.

Just then the door to the compartment opened and Lily stepped in. "Bye, Alice! Bye, Cindy! See you at the feast." She shut the door and only then did she notice he was awake. "Hi, Sev."

"Hey. Where were you?"

"Playing Exploding Snap with Alice and Cindy. Looks like that nap did you good."

He nodded, flicking his hair out of his eyes. "I guess. Are we going to meet in the library later on tonight?"

"Yes. Behind the row of Ancient Runes books, same as always." She bent to put her Charms text back in her trunk and slip on her black robes with the red and gold lion of Gryffindor.

He gazed at the crest as if seeing it for the first time, wishing fiercely that she had been Sorted anywhere but there. Malfoy's words to him at the end of term rose to mock him. _Gryffindor is our enemy, Snape. Get that through your thick Yorkshire skull. She's a Mudblood, now forget her!_

"Sev? Better get into robes," Lily reminded gently.

"Huh? Oh, right." He turned to tug his robes from his trunk, shrugging into them. _She's not my enemy, Malfoy. And she never will be. She's my best friend and . . .maybe even my girlfriend someday, if she ever would have me, worthless thing that I am._ He straightened, turning around to look at Lily.

"What?" he asked, for she wore an exasperated look on her face.

"Come here. Your tie's crooked, Sev." She brushed his hands away and fixed his tie and straightened his robes. "There! Much better."

He rolled his eyes, he hated being fussed over. But he didn't mind Lily's hands on his robes, he discovered, flushing. He looked down to hide his embarrassment, and then the train pulled into the station.

Lily turned to get her things, and suddenly Alice and Cindy were knocking on the door, calling for Lily to hurry up and find a carriage with them.

"Just a minute!" she muttered. "Sev, are you all set?"

"Almost. Go ahead, I'll be along eventually," he waved her away. "Library, seven o'clock, all right?"

Lily nodded, then followed her friends out the door.

Severus glanced about furtively before pulling a flask from his trunk and downing the contents. He sighed in relief as the potion started to work. The pain reliever would enable him to get through the Sorting and the feast, until he could gain the sanctuary of his room and apply some salve. He thanked Merlin that Eileen had taught him to make the Rapid Healing Salve that summer, he had a feeling he was going to need it.

He tucked the empty vial back with the other ones in the bottom of his trunk and then shut it, waving his wand over it to send it hovering behind him, and then he stepped off the train and headed for the horseless carriages waiting at the depot for the older students. He hoped this year would go better than his first one had.

_Two weeks later:_

"What do you mean, I need another friend, Lily?" Severus demanded, standing with his arms crossed, his dark eyes flashing daggers at the girl he had once thought was his best friend. They were down by the lake, it was a mild night for September in the Highlands, and at first he had been happy to see her, as always. Until she had suggested that he find another friend besides her.

"Sev, don't be mad . . .I don't mean that I don't want to be your friend," Lily began awkwardly, her hands twisting on her gray school skirt.

"Then what _do_ you mean?" he asked , a hurt tone creeping into his voice despite all his attempts to stifle it. "You want to go and hang around with your Gryffindor friends, fine! Just say so! I can take a hint."

"Severus, it's not like that! You're not listening. I just think you need someone else besides me to be friends with. A boy, somebody you could, uh . . .talk to about guy stuff and . . .you know . . ."

"Oh, I get it! You think I'm some kind of reject who can't make friends, is that it?" he cried, feeling himself go red with humiliation.

"No! Sev, please, you're taking this all wrong . . ."

"It's okay, Lily! I get it! You want me to leave you alone, you had enough of being with the slimy greaseball Slytherin, but you're too nice to say it to my face so you want me to find somebody else to be friends with so you don't feel guilty when you go back to your bloody Gryffindors. No explanation needed."

He spun about, so furious and hurt he felt as if he was going to explode. He felt as if someone had just ripped open his chest with a dull knife. _You should have known this wouldn't last, Snape. Nothing good ever does, you know that._ But he had been so sure that Lily would never turn on him, that despite all the rumors and disapproval from both their Housemates, she would remain faithful to her promise.

Angry tears stung his eyes and he stalked away, his hands clenched into fists in his robes, ignoring the girl's cries to stop and listen.

 _"Severus!_ Don't leave! I'm still your friend, you stubborn ass!"

He walked faster, trying to outrun the little voice in his head that was telling him to turn around and go back, that perhaps she hadn't meant what she said and that she was still willing to be friends with the Slytherin outcast.

He was so angry he didn't even notice where his feet were taking him, down the path past Hagrid's cottage towards the Forbidden Forest. He didn't want to enter the wood, just find a place where he could be alone, where he could mourn the sudden death of his friendship with Lily Evans.

"Oww!"

Severus jerked his head up at the sudden cry of pain. Where had that come from?

"Say it, you little mama's boy!" came a harsh voice. "Say I'm nothing but a slimy viper and I deserve to be stepped on."

There came the sound of a hand striking flesh, and another pained cry. Severus flinched instinctively, the sound brought back memories of Tobias.

"You gonna say it, you sniveling worm? Or would you like to stay here all night, tied to this tree, in your pants, Blackie, while the bugs and the manticores come and nibble you for a midnight snack?"

"No! Please! Let me go!"

Severus stalked quickly off the path and towards a stand of sycamores to the right of it, where the voices were coming from. His wand was clutched in his hand.

"You say it first, Mr. High and Mighty I'm Better Than Everyone Else Noble House of Black! Say it, you miserable coward!"

Severus froze upon hearing that statement, thinking it was Sirius in trouble. But then he recalled there was more than one Black at school now, and that one had been Sorted into Slytherin a mere two weeks past. The younger Black was not at all like his older brother, he was quiet, bookish, and tended to keep to himself. Good-looking, but unlike his brother, he did not seem to be aware of it, and when the girls in his House attempted to talk to him, he blushed and walked away. They thought it meant he was too good to associate with them, but Severus knew it was not condescension but shyness, because he had the same problem talking to any girl save Lily, and rather than stammering like an idiot, he said nothing.

Only now it seemed he had run into trouble and Severus was furious and itching to release some of his temper on a deserving target. He crept up on cat's feet and saw a much bigger boy with Gryffindor colors pointing a wand at the smaller first year, who was tied to a tree with white ropes, stripped of all his clothes save a pair of silken underpants, blood flowing from his nose, his hazel eyes filled with terror. There were welts on his chest and legs, and as Severus watched, the older boy cast another Stinging Hex at Regulus, making him jump and cry out.

Severus recognized the bigger boy, his name was Gordon, a third year who played Beater for Gryffindor, a Muggleborn and a classic bully. Normally, he would have hesitated to challenge an older student, but his temper was up and suddenly he was not minded to stand around and watch another Slytherin get pulverized.

He slipped from the cover of the trees and pointed his wand at the Beater, putting a finger to his lips so Regulus wouldn't warn the other inadvertently of Severus's presence. Then he hissed the words, " _Everte Statum!_ "

Gordon was blown backwards through the air, fetching up against a nearby oak tree. Dazed, the Beater groaned and sat up, rubbing his head in puzzlement.

Until Severus stalked from the trees, wand pointed at Gordon's head, and said in a soft deadly voice, "Why don't you pick on someone who can fight back, you miserable bugger? Or can't you handle yourself in real fight?"

"Huh? Where'd you come from?" Gordon muttered blearily. He groped for his wand which had been knocked from his hand by the force of Severus's spell, which was a dueling charm he had learned from studying a book about Defense Against the Darks last week in the library with Lily.

Severus saw and cast a Leglock jinx, preventing Gordon from reaching it. Then he marched up to the gaping Gryffindor and slammed his fist into the other's face. Gordon howled. "There! How does it feel, to be helpless while somebody beats the blazes out of _you_?" Snape growled. "Do you like it, you bloody bastard? Do you?"

"You'll pay, you damn snake . . .!" gasped the other.

Severus sneered at him. "In your dreams." Then he spoke another spell that made the other's clothes transparent, since he didn't know the one to banish clothes completely.

"My, you've got froggy pants, Gordon! Your mummy buy those?" mocked Severus, snickering.

"What!" yelped the other boy, frantically trying to cover himself. "How do you know that?"

"Magic."

Severus turned around, smothering a laugh.

"You all right, Black?"

Regulus stared at his rescuer, not answering for a moment. "My nose . . .I think it's broken."

"Hold on, let me untie you, then I'll see," Severus spoke quietly, he'd had more than his share of broken noses, he would know in an instant if Regulus's nose was indeed broken. He pointed his wand again, and said, "Finite Incantatem!"

The ropes holding Regulus to the tree slithered away, freeing the boy, who immediately went to his knees, his hands covering his face.

Severus tugged off his robe, draping it around the other's small shoulders. Then he knelt before the younger wizard. "Black, I need to take a look at your nose, okay? So take your hands away."

A muffled whimper followed that order.

Severus sighed. "Black, come on. I'm not going to hurt you. Let me see."

"N-no. You'll laugh at me for being a . . .crybaby. Like Sirius."

"I'm not your brother. Do I look like I'm laughing, huh?"

One hazel eye peered at him from between two fingers.

Severus remained still, looking right at the other boy calmly.

Slowly, Regulus took his hands away, and said, sniffling, "M'sorry. It hurts."

"Of course it does. Now hush." Severus ordered, pulling a handkerchief from another pocket and holding it to the abused nose. He gently felt along the bridge of the nose, pressing lightly.

Regulus whimpered. "Ouch!"

"Keep still. It's not broken, just bruised."

"How do you know that?"

"Experience." Severus said shortly. He took the handkerchief and tore it in half, then rolled the halves into two slender cylinders. "Okay, I need you to lean your head back."

"Why? What are you doing?"

"Stopping you from bleeding all over my robe. Come on, that's right." Severus tilted the other's head back. "Now stay still." He quickly inserted the two pieces of cloth into Regulus's nostrils.

"Hey!"

"Relax. I know it feels weird, but it'll stop the bleeding. Trust me."

Hazel eyes met obsidian. "Your name's Snape, right?"

"Yes. Severus Snape. You hurt anywhere else? I've got some Rapid Heal Salve in my bag."

Regulus shivered, it was starting to grow chilly. "Just where he cast the . . .the Stinging Hex," he said, sounding odd because of the noseplugs.

Severus turned to fetch his bag, which he had left a few feet away before coming out to confront Gordon, who was squirming and cursing in the grass. He quickly grabbed the salve and returned to Regulus. "Stand up."

The younger boy obeyed, blushing.

Severus simply rubbed the salve on the welts, and the Slyhterin sighed in relief as the magical salve began to heal them almost immediately. "Better?"

"Yes. Th-thanks."

"For what?"

"For helping me," Regulus said, surprised.

"Oh. You didn't think I'd just stand there and watch that bag of dragon turds beat you up, did you? You're a Slytherin and we stick together. How long has he been doing that to you, anyhow?"

Regulus frowned. "Since . . .I got here."

"Why didn't you tell someone? One of us or your brother?"

Regulus looked down at his feet. "Sirius . . .thinks I'm a sissy. And Gordon's a Gryffindor. He'd just tell me to suck up and deal with it, probably."

Severus scowled. "Some family you got there, Black. Your own brother won't protect you against a piece of crap." He shook his head in disgust, then finished applying the salve and tucked it away. "Why not? 'Cause you're a Slytherin?"

"My whole family's been Slytherin. Except Sirius. Mother says he's a disgrace and a rebel. And Sirius . . .he's glad he's not like me. He says I've got brains but no guts."

"Idiot! If anyone hurt _my_ little brother, I'd kick his arse to hell and back."

"You would?"

"Damn straight." Severus helped the smaller boy to his feet. "Tie that, Black. Don't want to give a girl heart failure, do you?"

"Huh? Oh!" Regulus quickly tied Snape's robe closed, reddening furiously.

Severus smirked. "C'mon, Black. Let's get back to the castle, it's getting late."

"Sure, Snape. But what about him?"

Severus eyed Gordon. "The spell will wear off . . .in a few hours. Hopefully before some hungry manticore comes out looking for a snack," he added, and Gordon began pleading with him to take the spell off.

"Please, please! You can't leave me here!"

"Quit whining, you big baby! I'll take the spell off . . .when you've learned your lesson." Severus finished. "Next time pick on somebody your own size."

He turned and walked away, and Regulus followed.

"Uh, Snape?"

"What?"

"You can call me Reg. All my friends do," stammered the youngest Black. _Or they would if I had any friends here._

Severus was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "And you can call me Sev." _Like my best friend used to._ He gave the other boy a tentative smile.

"How long do I have to keep these things in my nose?"

"Till we get back to the dungeons and I can see if the bleeding's stopped."

"Oh, okay. I owe you one."

"No. Like I said, Slytherins stick together."

Regulus shook his head firmly. "I know, but . . .it's a matter of honor. And someday I'll return the favor."

"A matter of honor? What are you, a lord, Reg?"

Regulus chuckled softly. "My mum thinks so. She says being a Black is nearly like being royalty."

"Oh, Merlin help me!" Severus muttered. "Listen, my _lord_ , you don't owe me anything. I hate bullies, I'd have helped you no matter what. Now drop it."

"All right, Sev," agreed Regulus, not wanting to make his new friend angry at him. But he knew he would not forget. A debt of honor was a debt of honor and someday he would return the favor, as was only proper.

They had just emerged from the trees and headed towards the lake so Regulus could wash off some of the blood on his face when Lily ran over to them. Her face was streaked with tears and Severus felt like someone had just sucker punched him in the jaw. Surely she wasn't crying over him?

"Severus! Please let me explain!"

"All right, Evans. Talk."

"I didn't mean to insult you before. I still want you as my friend. I always will, but I just thought . . .it'd be good if you could have someone else besides me, like I have Alice and you and Cindy . . .well, Cindy's not as good a friend as Alice, but anyway . . .I'm sorry if it didn't come out that way . . .You understand, don't you?"

She stared at him, her huge evergreen eyes filled with tears and all his earlier anger vanished. She still liked him. He felt as if an immense weight had been lifted off of his chest. He reached up a hand and gently wiped a tear away. "Yes, Lily. I do now. I'm sorry, I overreacted. When you said . . .I thought . . .ah, hell . . .you know what I mean, right?"

Lily smiled. "Always, Sev." Then she turned and looked at Regulus. "Aren't you going to introduce me, Severus?"

"What? Oh, Lily, this is Regulus Black. Reg, Lily Evans. We're neighbors back home and she's my other friend."

"Nice to meet you, Lily," Regulus said, reaching out a hand.

Lily took it, then gasped. "Oh God! What happened to your face?"

"Uh . . ."

"An arsehole," Severus supplied.

"Gryffindor?" Lily groaned.

Severus nodded. "Gordon. Your Beater. But he won't do it again, if he's smart, which I doubt."

"What did you do to him, Sev?"

Severus told her and to Regulus' surprise, she did not stick up for her Housemate. "Good! He could use a good object lesson! Come here, Regulus. You're all over blood. Let's wash it off." She promptly dragged Regulus over to the lake, and dipped a handkerchief into the water and washed his face over his protests.

Severus laughed softly. "Don't fight her, mate. You'll lose. She does whatever she wants, and she loves to fix people."

"Look who's talking, Severus Snape." Lily snorted. "That's your handiwork." She indicated Regulus's nose.

"So? What was I supposed to do, let him bleed to death?"

Lily smirked knowingly. "Never mind." She finished washing the blood off Regulus's face. "There! Much better."

"Thanks," said the other shyly.

"You're welcome." Lily smiled. "You're Sirius's brother, aren't you?"

"Don't hold it against him," Severus interjected.

"I won't." Lily laughed.

Regulus blinked. "Y'mean, you don't like my brother? But all the girls think he's wonderful."

"Not me. He and Potter are nothing but spoiled bullies in my opinion. I wouldn't go out with either of them if they were last men on earth, no matter how good-looking they are." Lily declared.

Regulus grinned. "Merlin! Finally a girl who doesn't think my brother is the best thing since wizard crackers." He eyed Severus and said quietly, "Better hang on to this one, Sev."

Severus flushed, then said, "I intend to."

Together, the three returned to the castle, and just before they reached the entrance, Lily turned to the two boys and bid them goodnight. "I'll see you tomorrow in potions, Sev. Good night." Then, before she lost all her nerve, she leaned in and kissed him, very lightly, on the lips.

Severus froze, astonished.

Lily turned and raced into the castle before he could say anything, her face nearly as red as her hair, but she was grinning, and she skipped all the way up to Gryffindor Tower.

Regulus whistled. "Like I said, better hang on to that one."

Severus blinked. Then he found himself grinning like an idiot. "Believe me, Reg, I will. I'm not stupid." He clapped his new friend on the shoulder. "Move it, kid. Before we're caught out after curfew."

The two scurried down to the dungeons, slipping inside the portrait hole just as the clock in the entrance hall struck nine-thirty.

That night, Severus went to bed and dreamed of Lily and him kissing down by the lake, and he was telling her, " _Nothing will ever keep us apart, not my House or yours, or your parents, nothing. I will love you always, Lily Evans."_

_And she kissed him back and whispered, "I love you too, Sev. And I will always be there for you."_

In Gryffindor Tower, Lily shared the same dream, and when she woke in the morning she was still smiling and a part of her wondered if what she had dreamed was prophetic. Then she giggled behind her hand, thinking about what Alice would say if she knew Lily had actually kissed a boy. On the lips. _I think I'm the first, by Merlin's hat! And it was wonderful._

She found it difficult to concentrate during the rest of the morning.

Severus had similar problems, even in potions, which he normally excelled.

That lesson, he was not paired with Lily, and he kept recalling the way her eyes had glowed just before she had left him last night, and the dream kept intruding as well, so that he nearly messed up his potion.

"Hey, Snape, watch how you're stirring!" exclaimed Narcissa. "It's clockwise, not counterclockwise, remember?"

"Hmm?" He looked down at the stirrer in his hand. "Oh. Of course."

She eyed him. "Are you sick, Snape? Because I've never seen you like this before."

He shook his head, then put the stirrer in the cauldron and began to stir it clockwise, a faint smile on his face.

Narcissa shook her head. If she didn't know better, she would think Snape was mooning over a girl. But what girl would ever give skinny, sarcastic, crooked-nosed Severus Snape the time of day?

**How did you like Regulus? And in case you didn't know, Alice is eventually going to be Alice Longbottom, Neville's mother. I never knew what her maiden name was, so I gave her one of my choosing.**

**Next: The infamous Snape's Worst Memory will be dealt with in this chapter, but be warned, it doesn't end the way you think!**


	4. Repayment of A Debt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The infamous Snape's Worst Memory--with a twist. Plus a flashback to a holiday dance!

**June, 1976:**

**Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL**

**Hogwarts**

James Potter yawned and ran his hand through his wavy dark hair, making it stand on end. He had learned long before that chicks dug the way his hair looked all mussed and windblown. He shuffled his exam paper, not minded to double check it. He was sure he had done well. He darted a look at the clock, they had about ten minutes left until Flitwick collected the papers. He glanced idly behind him, grinning at Sirius, who was leaning back in his chair, a lazy grin on his face. Then he looked over and saw Remus, who was still intent on his exam, and Pettigrew was sweating nervously and trying to peek over at his neighbor's test.

James just shook his head, Peter was not the brightest spark in the fireplace, but it wasn't that he was trying to cheat that caused James to scowl ferociously, it was who he was trying to copy answers from. For the student next to Peter at the end of the row was none other than Severus Snape.

Snape was bent over his paper, writing swiftly and intently, from what little James could see, the paper was covered with Snape's handwriting. _What the hell is he writing, a bloody novel?_ James thought scornfully. He glared daggers at the Slytherin, ever since that fist fight outside the library during first year, James had loathed Snivellus Snape. He was the typical slimy Slytherin, greasy, fascinated with the Dark Arts, and too smart. He could have been decent looking, but his nose had been broken, courtesy of James, and his hair was always in his eyes, and he was always dressed in worn patched clothing.

And yet, something about him drew Lily Evans to him, though what it was remained a mystery to James. He couldn't, for the life of him, figure out why Lily chose to remain friends with such a deadbeat outcast, one who was so clearly destined to come to a bad end in Azkaban. And more, partner him at the Yule Ball last year. James ground his back teeth together, recalling how Lily had rejected him in front of half of Gryffindor House when he had asked her to go with him.

_December, 1974_

_"Hey, Evans . . .uh, I mean, Lily . . .got a moment?"_

_She turned to face him, her bag over her shoulder, on her way out the portrait hole from the looks of it. Her auburn hair glinted in the light cast by the lamps in the common room, making it appear as if she had a fiery nimbus crowning her. "Make it quick, Potter. I need to get to the library before it closes."_

_"All right, Evans. Keep your panties on," he drawled, rumpling his hair up and smiling at her, his brilliant smile that never failed to make girls swoon. "You know, if you study too much, your head will explode." He waited for her to laugh, the way all the other girls did at his wit. But Lily just tossed him an annoyed look._

_"That was a joke. You're supposed to laugh," he coaxed._

_"I didn't think it was funny. What do you want, Potter?"_

_"You know the Yule Ball is coming up, right? I'll bet you ten Galleons that with all the time you spend studying, you haven't even gotten a date yet. Well, not to worry. I'll save you the trouble of having to find a bloke, Lily, and I'll take you. What do you say?"_

_He waited, a tad anxiously, for her to say yes, and to finally appreciate that he was actually choosing her over all the other girls he had throwing themselves at him. Really, it was quite an honor._

_To his utter disbelief, she looked him up and down, sniffed, and said, "Sorry, Potter. But I already have a date for the ball."_

_He gaped. "You . . .do? But who?"_

_She turned away, not bothering to reply._

_"Evans . . .Lily, who is it?" James persisted, unable to believe she actually had a date. She never got her nose out of a book long enough to hold a conversation with anyone except Alice, Cindy, and . . .Snape. "Oh, no! Evans, tell me you're not going with . . .with that swamp rat, Snivellus."_

_Lily whirled around, her hair settling like a fiery cloak about her shoulders, her emerald eyes flashing green fire. "Don't call him that disgusting name, Potter! Not that it's any business of yours, but if you_ **must** _know, the answer is yes, I am going with **Severus.** And I'm sure he will behave like a gentleman and treat me like a person and not a conquest, Potter! **He** asked me, he didn't assume!"_

_Then she flounced out the door, leaving James with his jaw hanging open like a witless fish._

_"Tough break, mate," Sirius consoled, patting his friend on the shoulder. "But hey, she's not the only chick in the henhouse."_

_James frowned, irritated for once at Sirius's cavalier attitude._

_"_ I'll _go with you, James!" gushed Cindy, coming over to him and gazing at him with utter worship in her eyes._

_James sighed, then looked at her. Cindy was cute, petite, and built. And she liked him. "All right, Graves. We're a couple. Get a nice dress, okay?"_

_Cindy squealed, then threw her arms around him and kissed him. "Ooh, we're going to have a wonderful time, Jamie!"_

_"Sure we will, Graves," he replied, but he felt . . .dissatisfied. For the first time in his life he felt the sharp sting of rejection, and he found he did not like it at all. The only child of rich elderly parents, he had always been the apple of his parents' eyes, overindulged and spoiled. He had only to ask and it was given. Except in this case._

_Lily Evans frustrated the hell out of him. What the hell did Snape have that he didn't? Nothing. And yet, she had turned him down for Snivellus. Gryffindors shouldn't accept invitations to school dances from Slytherins. Especially not when they had perfectly decent Gryffindors asking them out._

_A week later at the ball, James was sitting at a table, sulking, while Cindy pouted and went to get to a cup of punch. He knew he wasn't being fair to the other girl, who really enjoyed being seen with him, and had looked at him as if he were Merlin come back from the dead when she had met him in the Entrance Hall that night. Normally, he would have been able to just enjoy the party and dance and flirt and have a good time._

_But then he happened to look over at the dance floor, where the band was playing a soft number, and seen Lily dancing with Snape._

_They were looking into each other's eyes, and both wore a smile of utter fascination and contentment, a smile that was for just the two of them. And Snape had his hand on her waist, holding her closer than he should have, James thought jealously, but she didn't seem to mind. No, she was laughing up at him, the little tease, and the Slytherin was smirking, his eyes sparkling._

_Ugh! How can she let him touch her? I hope he took a bath, James thought nastily, though even he had to reluctantly admit that Snape actually looked halfway decent, in new dress robes and a nice suit with a tie and shoes, his hair washed and combed and pulled back in a tail. Even his crooked nose didn't seem so crooked then._

_He watched them dancing for a few more minutes, jealousy burning a hole in his gut._

_Cindy returned with the punch, and James looked at her critically. There's something wrong with you, Potter, he scolded himself. Here's a willing pretty girl here that'll do whatever you want and you're still moping after silly Evans. Get a life, for Merlin's sake._

_"Thanks, Cindy." He took a cup of punch from her and drank it down. Too bad it didn't have any firewhiskey in it. "Hey, you want to dance a bit?"_

_Cindy lit up like a Zonko's firecracker. "Oooh, Jamie, I thought you'd never ask! C'mon, baby, let's do the tango!" She practically dragged him off his chair and onto the dance floor._

_He danced quietly with her for a few measures, then he pulled her close and began to kiss her, his hands wandering leisurely up her back. She kissed him back, clearly welcoming his attention, and James felt his confidence restored. Beaming, he twirled Cindy Graves about, hoping Lily was paying attention to how good he looked._

_And yet, by the end of the night, he still felt embers of jealousy every time he looked at Snape and Lily, who couldn't take their eyes off each other all night, and seemed to be touching even when they were apart. It wasn't fair! He fought the urge to stomp his feet and howl like a little baby. Instead he indulged in a long snogging session with Cindy, but even so he still felt as if he was missing something._

"Time's up! Quills down!" Flitwick ordered.

James blinked, coming out of his reverie. He set down his quill, he had been doodling absentmindedly on a piece of parchment. He had drawn a snitch and also the letters L. E. with a heart around it. To his astonishment, he saw Lily, who was three rows up and across from him, turn about and flash Snape a smile.

Snape lifted his nose from the parchment, looked up, and returned Lily's smile.

James ground his teeth together, wanting to gag. What right did Snivellus have to look so happy, he was nothing but a Death Eater wanna-be, like all his House. He didn't deserve to have Lily look at him that way, James thought, seething. _Merlin, but I hate you, Snivellus._

"Please remain seated while I collect your papers. _Accio!_ " Flitwick summoned their exams off their desks, interrupting James's bitter musings. The papers zoomed towards Flitwick and knocked the small professor over.

Several students, including Sirius and Peter laughed, but Lily and Alice went to help Flitwick up. "Thank you, thank you, my dears." Flitwick said, a trifle red in the face as he accepted the girls' hand up and picked up his papers.

James scribbled over the L. E. and stuffed his papers back in his bag, then strolled leisurely out the door and to the Entrance Hall, waiting impatiently for his best friends to appear.

Soon Sirius and Remus appeared and then Peter, who looked nervous and a little upset. He had never done well on standardized tests.

"Moony how did you like number ten- _give the five signs that identify a werewolf_?" Sirius asked the slightly taller blond Lupin.

Remus smirked. "Loved it."

"Do you think you got all the signs right, Moony?" James drawled, a mocking glint in his eye.

"Oh, I'd say so, James." Remus held up a finger. "One-he's sitting on my chair. Two-he's wearing my clothes. Three-his name's Remus Lupin." He spoke in a very soft tone, so that only the Marauders were able to hear him.

Sirius and James burst out laughing. Peter didn't laugh, he just looked more agitated. His pointed nose began to twitch, like it always did when he grew nervous.

"I don't know if I got them all right. I could only remember three-the pointed snout, the shape of the eyes, and the tufted tail. I tried to copy from Snape, but he writes too small for me to read."

James gave Peter a disgusted look. "Wormtail, how thick can you be? You hang around one every full moon and you can't remember what he looks like? And what's with trying to get answers from Snivellus?"

Peter flushed. "I . . .get nervous when I have to sit for exams, you know that. My mind just goes blank. And Snape . . .he's smart, one of the smartest kids in the school . . .he remembers almost everything . . .so I tried to see what he wrote . . ."

James rolled his eyes. "Thick as a castle wall . . ."

"Ah, who cares?" Sirius laughed dismissively. "We're done for the day, let's go outside and celebrate. It's great weather out, let's go down by the lake. I saw some babes heading that way."

They quickly exited the school and headed down near the lake, where james saw Lily, her best friends Alice and Cindy, and a few other girls, sitting and dabbling their feet in the water, since it was terribly hot today. James bit back a sigh of longing and flung himself down under a beech tree. Sirius followed suit and so did Peter. Remus, more conscious about dirtying his robes, sat on a bench a nearby and pulled out a Transfiguration text, brushing up on some concepts for tomorrow's test.

"I think I got an Outstanding on that one," Sirius said confidently. "How about you, Prongs?"

"Definitely." James replied, slanting a quick glance over at the lake. Lily and her friends were giggling over something. _Wish they'd look this way._ He ruffled his hair and then remembered the Snitch he'd nicked from Hooch's office the other day. He pulled it out and started to toss it in the air, catching it just before it could take off.

"Where'd you get that, James?" asked Peter.

"Nicked it." He continued to flick the Snitch effortlessly into the air, all the while keeping tabs upon the girls at the lakeshore.

Cindy and a few others had noticed him tossing the golden ball, but Lily had yet to look his way.

"I'm bored," Sirius announced.

"Why don't you study for Transfiguration, Padfoot? That's the last OWL," suggested Remus, thrusting the text out towards his friend.

"I don't need to study, Moony. I know all that rubbish!" Sirius waved him off. "I don't want to spend the afternoon with my nose in a book, like my smartarse little brother." He made a face, for he and Regulus did not really get on, especially now that Reg was in Slytherin.

James was still tossing the Snitch, and still watching the girls out of the corner of his eye. But Lily was not even aware of him, she was still talking animatedly to Alice. Peter was panting, looking at James catching the Snitch with something resembling religious adulation, his watery blue eyes fastened upon James's lean muscular frame.

"James, put that thing away before Wormtail wets himself," Sirius ordered in a bored tone.

Peter blushed and looked away.

James tucked the Snitch back in his pocket, and noticed with a sudden flutter in his chest that Lily was now looking across the grass at . . .he followed her gaze and saw that it was resting, not on him, but on his rival.

Snape was sitting a few feet away, beside a large huckleberry bush, peering intently at his paper, his knees tucked to his chest, his hair hanging partially in his eyes.

 _Sodding little greasball. Thinks he's a bloody professor or something, the way he always knows the answers and stuff. I'll bet he's read half the library, he practically lives there. So does Lily,_ whispered another part of his mind, but he ignored it.

Snape had gotten up and put the paper away, he picked up his bag, looking like he was ready to leave, and then Lily called out from the edge of the lake, waving at him to join them.

James saw red. "Padfoot. Look, it's Snivellus."

"Perfect. This day just got a whole lot better," Sirius grinned, and rose to his feet, wand out, to play with his favorite target-the lowly outcast Snivellus Snape.

Severus did not realize the danger at first, he was too busy trying to recap the exam. But soon he found his thoughts straying to how Lily had looked the night of the Yule Ball-like an enchantress of faerie come down to mingle with mortals upon a midsummer's eve-as he had read in Shakespeare's play, _A Midsummer Night's Dream_. He sighed as he recalled what it had felt like to hold her in his arms, his beautiful lily-flower, the only girl he had ever felt this strongly about, and the only girl who had ever seen past the Slytherin crest and the ragged clothes and long greasy hair to the boy beneath. With Lily, he felt safe, he had no need of masks, he could just be himself, just Severus . . .

He stood up, intending to go back inside and get a drink, for it was awfully hot out that afternoon, and he was beginning to develop a headache from the glare and the heat. But then he heard Lily calling, and looked over to see her waving from the lakeshore.

"Hey, Sev! Come on and join us!"

Severus hesitated, he knew Lily's friends didn't really like the fact that they were an item, but then he squared his shoulders. Since when did he care what anyone thought about him? He loved Lily and he thought she was starting to have feelings for him too, else why would she be willing to go to the ball with him and be seen publically with him as well?

He started to turn towards the lake when he heard another voice, low with menace.

"All right, Snivellus?"

 _Potter!_ Severus's brain slipped into an automatic defensive mode and he spun, drawing his wand as he did so.

But he was a shade too slow, having been caught off guard.

James was faster, and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"

Severus's wand was blown out of his hand.

Sirius had come to stand next to James, and was laughing uproariously. "Smooth move, Sniffly Snape."

Severus sprang after his wand, but ended up flat on his back after Sirus cast the Impediment Curse upon him, helpless to defend himself. _Stupid, Severus! Never ever let your guard down! Idiot! Now you're helpless._ He tried to frantically recall the countercharm to the jinx, but James came and leered at him, hazel eyes bright with loathing.

"How'd the exam go, Snivelly? Memorize all the questions?"

"I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment," Sirius sneered. "There will be great grease marks all over it, they won't be able to read a word."

By then several other students had come to watch the show, and they laughed at Black's wit, as always.

Severus struggled against the jinx, furious. He gasped, cursing himself for allowing a girl to distract him from his constant state of alertness. This year had proven the worst ever as far as the Marauders' campaign to torment him, they stalked him everywhere, though they usually waited till he was alone, without Lily or Reg, to start on him. "You wait . . .you wait . . ." he growled, glaring up at his tormentors.

"Wait for what?" Sirius taunted, all cool arrogance, eyeing Snape the way you would a piece of rubbish. "For you to wipe your nose on us, Snivelly?"

Everyone else laughed mockingly and Severus wanted nothing so much as to hex the arrogant bully into the next universe. He could feel the spell starting to wear off and he gathered himself, spitting out a few choice swear words learned from Tobias to distract Black and Potter while he marshaled his power.

James pointed his wand at him. "Wash out your mouth, you filthy bugger. _Scourgify!_ "

Severus gasped and gagged as pink soap bubbles filled his mouth, and he coughed and retched uncontrollably, his power scattering as his concentration broke.

Lily had been sitting calmly by the lake, cooling her feet in the water along with Alice and Cindy, talking quietly about their test and the possible results. Lily stared out over the black water, the sun dazzling upon the surface. Smiling, Lily shut her eyes, and immediately fell into a daydream about the last time she had danced and kissed Severus, during the Yule Ball.

_"You look wonderful tonight, Lily," he had murmured, his hands reaching up to cup her face, ever so gently. In his eyes was a fierce protectiveness and something wild . . .something primal, it called to her with all of her being, and then his gaze swept down her and she found herself flushing and burning with an unaccustomed heat, like a candle set ablaze._

_"Thank you, Sev. You look handsome too."_

_He shook his head, unwilling to take her words at face value. "I don't think . . ."_

_"I do." Then she was reaching out, and drawing him to her, and their lips met._

_It was like a jolt of purest fire, followed by a sudden surge of desire so great she nearly swayed on her feet, and only her grip on Severus's lean muscled arms kept her upright. There was a hidden strength in those arms, though he kept them hidden beneath the fabric of his robes, gained from long hours stirring and moving cauldrons of potions._

_"Lily." He whispered her name as if it were the answer to a prayer._

_"Sev." She gasped, drowning in a torrent of desire and sweet longing. Now, at last, she understood what the poets meant when they said they had been "swept away by love's sweet fire."_

"Hey! Earth to Lily!" Alice called, tapping the side of her friend's head playfully. "Where did you go, Evans?"

Lily blinked and sighed happily. "Somewhere wonderful."

"Oh?" Cindy quirked an eyebrow. "With whom? Sweet Severus?"

Alice shouted with laughter. "Cindy, you are wicked! Calling that one sweet."

Lily frowned. "He is sweet, Alice. At least to me. The night of the ball . . .he kissed me . . ."

"And? Tell, Evans!" Alice demanded. "How did it make you feel?"

"Greasy?" teased Cindy. "Ow!" she yelped as Lily smacked her on the ear.

"Shut up, Graves! I told you before, don't talk like that about him. Unless you want to be drinking your meals through a straw."

Cindy stared at her. "Evans, take a Calming Draught. I was only teasing."

"It's not funny. I'm sick and tired of all you Gryffindors making jokes about my boyfriend. Have you ever gotten to know him? Talked to him? Looked at him as anything but a scummy Slytherin?"

Cindy looked away, feeling ashamed. "Well, no."

"No, all you do is what everyone else in this bloody House does, mock him for his looks." Lily snapped. " And you wonder why he never wants to spend any time in Gryffindor Tower like Frank does or Potter. He knows he won't be welcome, that he'd be in enemy territory."

"But, Lil, how often are you down in the dungeons?" asked Alice.

"Quite a lot, since Severus and Reg have their own room. Sev's a fifth year, so in Slytherin that means you can have a room with a roommate of your choice. And he's a prefect too." Lily said proudly.

"I never said he wasn't brilliant, Lil," began Alice. "Just . . .unsociable."

"He wouldn't be if all of you didn't act like gits to him, Alice! If you'd just give him a chance . . ." Lily began hotly.

Alice held up her hands. "Down, dragon lady! I surrender! Okay, why don't you invite him over here and we'll talk a bit. All right, Cindy? Maybe Lily's right, and we are being unfair."

"Okay. Why not? Look, Lily, he's over there!" Cindy pointed across the grass.

Lily turned and saw Severus, just climbing to his feet, obviously in a brown study. "Sev! Over here!" She waved frantically. "Come and join us!"

He looked up . . .their eyes met . . .and he smiled, his dark eyes bright with pleasure.

Then Potter and his bullying friend Sirius stalked over to him and started their usual crap.

Lily saw red. She knew that Severus could take care of himself usually, he could duel quite well and had beaten both Black and Potter on more than one occasion, when they were one on one. But this time, he wasn't fast enough to dodge the Disarming Charm Potter threw and in five minutes he was helpless on the ground, choking on some foul pink bubbles and suddenly Lily had had enough.

"Leave him ALONE!"

She sprinted across the lawn and was joined by a taller figure wearing a Slytherin crest.

"My brother and his lame friend are at it again, huh, Evans?" Regulus asked sharply, his hazel eyes blazing.

"Looks like it, Reg. Only this time . . .I'm going to give Potter a good piece of my mind, the great berk!"

"All right. You wallop Potter's arse, and I'll deal with Sirius," Regulus growled. "I haven't had a good scrap with him since Christmas." _And now I can repay the debt I owe Severus at last,_ thought Regulus. He drew his wand.

"Leave him _alone_ , Potter!" Lily snarled. "Before I kick you all the way to the Hebrides."

James turned around, a smile stealing across his face at finally gaining Lily's attention. "All right, Evans?" he said, his voice suddenly gentle. "Merlin, but you're beautiful when you're mad, you know that?"

"Why you . . .you . . .arrogant . . ." she sputtered, unable to believe he was trying to romance her after he had so cruelly hexed her boyfriend.

"Handsome, brilliant, totally cool, Quidditch flyer extraordinaire . . ." James purred, smirking. "I know, I know, Evans. You secretly want to go out with me, admit it. You want to dump Snivellus here and go out with me, right?"

"Not in a million years, Potter! I'd sooner go on a date with the giant squid."

"Ouch!" Sirius winced dramatically. "That was cruel, Evans."

"Shut it, Sirius!" Regulus cried. "Get off him! Or else." He was about four feet from his older brother, looking like he wanted to knock Sirius to the moon.

Sirius turned around to face his brother, shaking an admonitory finger at him. "Now, now, baby brother. You know what Mother said about fighting."

"Bugger yourself, Siri! And leave my friend alone!"

"Language, kid. Don't make me teach you another lesson, Regulus," warned the elder Black, his eyes suddenly hard.

"Do it then, you cock-walking shite!" challenged Regulus, his temper exploding. "Or are you only brave enough to fight someone two on one?"

"You calling me a coward, Reg?"

"If the cloak fits, Siri . . ."

"That does it! This time, little brother, I'm going to wallop your arse till you howl and to the devil with Mother and my promise!" Sirus pointed his wand at Regulus. "Impedimenta!"

But Regulus was prepared, he had practiced for hours on the weekends with Severus in friendly duels, and he twirled his wand in a counter so fast that Sirius was nearly caught by his own spell. "You were saying?"

Sirius flushed, and several watchers snickered at seeing him shown up by his little brother. The rivalry between the Blacks had always been fierce, both at home and at school, as they competed for their parents' affections and recognition.

"That I'm going to tan your hide, little viper!" Sirius tried a Disarming Charm.

Regulus blocked it, glaring. "Don't call me that, you damn bullying prat!" he cast a Boil Jinx, but Sirius dodged it.

"Why not?" demanded Sirius, sensing he'd hit a sore spot. "It's the truth. You're nothing but a treacherous snake, headed straight down the dark path to the arms of You-Know Who!"

"No!" Regulus shouted. "Don't you DARE say that! I am not evil! I'm not!" his voice cracked upon that last word, and he pointed his wand and screamed, " _Everte Statum!"_

Sirius was sent flying backwards, he crashed into Peter and knocked the smaller boy flat.

Several people cheered. "Way to go, little Blackie! Maybe you ought to be in the Dueling Club."

Regulus ignored them, advancing on his brother. "If you say that again, Sirius, I swear I'm going to hex your tongue out."

"Easy, Black. You don't really mean that." Remus spoke up, setting down his book. He didn't like the way Regulus was looking at his brother, as if he wanted to do some serious damage to him.

Regulus spun on him, his hazel eyes glowing with fury. "But out, Lupin! This doesn't concern you. It's a family matter."

"What?" Sirius cried, coming to his feet. "Since when is Snivellus family?"

"Since he treats me better than you, Sirius Orion Black!"

"How do you figure that?"

"Well, let's see. When Gordon was pounding me every other day, you just told me to quit whining. Severus kicked the creep's arse when he tied me to a tree and was going to leave me as food for a manticore. Whenever I needed you, you weren't there! You were off with Potter and Lupin and Pettigrew, playing big bad Marauder!" Regulus shouted, tears glittering in his eyes, that he quickly blinked away.

"Aww, poor little Reggie!" sneered Sirius. "I told you when you got on the train, you were going to have to learn to stand up for yourself and not be a sissy. What did you want me to do, Reg, hold your hand? Wipe your nose? Kiss your arse, like Mum?"

Regulus didn't answer, he was trembling, trying to control himself. He could feel his magic surging wildly, nearly spiraling out of control.

"No. He wanted you to watch his back, you arsehole," came another voice, soft with anger and scorn. "Like a real brother."

It was Severus, having finally freed himself of the jinx, standing up, giving Sirius a look that should have fried him where he stood.

"Like you'd know what that was, Snivelly," Sirius mocked. "Your parents didn't dare have anymore kids after they saw the way you turned out."

Severus sneered, his lip curling. "Yours saw you and decided to try for a better model, puppydog."

Sirius went to hex Severus, but Regulus stepped in the way, and fired off a Stinging Hex at his brother. "I'd . . .sooner have Severus as my brother . . .than . . .you!"

"You would, you rotten bastard!" Sirius shouted, and gestured suddenly at Snape.

Severus found himself upside down, in mid-air, his robes falling over his face, and then his trousers vanished, revealing his worn threadbare underpants. _Bloody hell, Severus! He's used Levicorpus on you!_ His mind seethed, even as he struggled to concentrate and summon his wand. _He must have read the spell notes in the margin when you left your potions book in Slughorn's classroom when he was in detention that time!_

He felt himself flush blood red as the other students jeered and mocked him for his worn pants, laughing hysterically.

"You need to buy a new pair, Snape!"

"Yeah, you ain't impressing no girl with your skinny arse!" snickered another.

"Get him down, Sirius!" ordered Regulus.

"Make me."

Regulus lunged at him, and tackled his brother to the ground. He had grown some since he was a small scrawny first year, put on weight and muscle, and he was nearly a match for Sirius now.

James guffawed as the two Blacks rolled on the ground like two wildcats. Then he looked at Snape, still hanging in mid-air, struggling, and he turned to Lily and said, "Now, Evans, why would you want to go out with someone who looks like _that_?"

Lily drew her wand. "Cancel the spell, Potter!"

"Evans, don't make me hex you."

"Do it, you bullying toerag! What's he ever done to you?"

"Well, it's more the fact that he exists, you see."

"You're a riot, Potter. Let him down!"

"Go out with me, Lily. If you say yes, I swear I'll never lay a wand on Snivelly here again."

"Don't you understand English, Potter? I'll never go out with you."

"Why not? Give me one good reason."

"I'll give you three, Potter. One, I don't date arrogant jackasses. Two, I hate immature prats who think every girl worships them. And three, Severus is worth ten of you any day of the week."

Underneath his robes, Severus smiled.

He concentrated hard, silently summoning his wand. He had never tried to perform wandless magic before, but hearing Lily verbally thrash Potter that way gave him the necessary impetus to do so. _Accio my wand!_

The ebony wand suddenly flew into his grasp. Then he nonverbally cast the counter to the Levicorpus spell. _Liberacorpus!_

The next instant he was down on the ground, his wand pointed at Potter. "Looks like she told you, Potter," he said, and did something he hardly ever did. He grinned openly.

James went red and started to say something, but Lily snapped, "Incarcerous!" and ropes shot out of her wand and wrapped about James, tying him fast.

 _Levicorpus!_ Severus thought, and James was hanging upside down in the air by his ankle.

Lily laughed and took his arm. Then she waved her wand. "Nice pants, Potter!" she called. "You all right, Sev?"

"Now I am," he said, then he bent and kissed her, for once not caring who saw.

People clapped and gasped, to see such devotion displayed so openly between rival Houses.

Then Regulus cried, "Look out, Sev!"

Wormtail had snuck up behind the couple, wand out, ready to cast a nasty hex.

"Expelliarmus! Impedimenta!" shouted Regulus.

Wormtail was blasted halfway across the lawn by Regulus's spell barrage.

Severus turned around and inclined his head to his friend. "Nice one, Reg."

Regulus stood up, dusting his hands off. His face was battered, but he too was smiling. "You're welcome, Sev. Told you I'd repay you someday."

Then he joined Severus and Lily as they made their way down to the lake where Alice and Cindy waited.

Behind them, James called, in a muffled tone, "Uh . . .Sirius? Can you help me get down, mate?"

But Sirius did not answer.

"Sirius, c'mon, mate! My head's about to explode. And my arse is freezing."

"He can't hear you, Prongs," came Lupin's voice. "His brother knocked him out."

"You've got to be kidding!"

"Fraid not. Let me wake him up. _Ennervate_!"

Sirius groaned and blinked. "Huh? What happened?"

"Your little brother," Remus answered, chuckling.

"Aww, Merlin's bloody arse!" Sirius cried. "I am never going to live this down!"

"That makes two of you," Remus said, indicating James.

"Padfoot, get me down, damn it all!"

Sirius stared. "What happened to you?"

"Snape," Moony laughed.

"Bloody hell!" He glared at Moony. "What's so funny, Lupin?"

"You, Sirius. I told you someday you'd go too far and you didn't listen."

"Ah, shut it, Lupin!" ordered Sirius, and then he waved his wand and James was released from the Levicorpus spell, amid snickers and derisive laughter.

Sirius reversed the spells on James, who straightened his robes with something less than his usual cocky grin. "Where's Evans?"

"Went off with Snape," sighed Remus. He pointed to the lakeshore.

James glanced over, but the lakeshore was now empty of occupants. There was a dull ache in the pit of his stomach, as he discovered for the first time the feel of humiliation, shame, and the dawning realization that he had lost his chance with Lily Evans forever. He turned away, grimacing at the sudden bitter taste on his tongue.

**So . . .how did you like that little twist?**

**Also, the Yule Ball in this story has nothing to do with the Yule Ball in GOF, which was connected with the tournament. Here, I use the same title for a holiday dance, since Yule is the old word for the Christmas season from pagan tradition.**

**Next: More romance between Lily and Sev at night beside the lake.**


	5. Stolen Moments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls and Severus and Regulus visit the boys room and see how a Slytherin prefect lives. Then Sirius and Regulus quarrel and Lily and Severus have a stolen moment together.

Severus and Regulus had followed Lily back to the lakeshore, where her best friends, Alice and Cindy, were tossing crackers to the giant squid, Decius. Every time the squid would catch a cracker in its tentacle, the girls would clap and cheer. It was a childish game, Severus thought at first, something he would never lower himself to participate in. But Lily joined right in and after a few moments, so did Regulus.

"Sev! Don't be such a wet blanket," Lily teased gently, her emerald eyes sparkling. "Here. Give Decius a cracker." She handed him a wheat wafer.

He stared at it, feeling like an idiot. They were all looking at him. He hurled the cracker into the lake and the squid caught it in midair.

Lily and the girls whooped, laughing, and even Regulus grinned. Slowly, Severus smiled slightly. Maybe it was a ridiculous game, but it was harmless fun, and it brought to mind the times when he was younger and he and Lily used to throw bread to the ducks that sometimes swam in the creek behind their house. Back when they were young and innocent and the only enemy he had was Tobias and his temper. He turned and gazed at the object of his affection and suddenly he was chuckling softly, her mood was contagious. _All right, so we're behaving like six-year-olds again. But who cares?_ Lily had told off Potter for him, she had admitted in front of a large number of students that she preferred _him_ -Severus Snape-to the ultra popular and handsome rich-boy Potter. At that moment, he felt like walking on air. And that kiss . . .ah, God, it had been so sweet! He wished it had never ended.

"Want another one, Snape?"

He turned to see Cindy Graves offering him another cracker for the squid. She struck him as a bit of a bubblehead, but at least she wasn't sneering or talking down to him like most of the girls in Gryffindor. And some in Slytherin and Ravenclaw too, if he was going to be honest.

He took it and thanked her politely. She looked startled, and he tossed the cracker in the lake, thinking, _Bet you're surprised I have good manners, aren't you?_ He fought to keep a sneer from his face and from blurting sarcastically, _Yes, Graves, my mother taught me how to say please and thank you like every other good mother does. Just because I'm a half-blood and a Slytherin doesn't mean I'm gutter trash. We might be poor, but that doesn't mean I act like a buffoon._ But he reined in his temper, which lately was prone to take everything as a slight. There had been enough arguing today, he didn't want to start quarreling again.

The squid had finished off the rest of the crackers in a matter of minutes and Alice wiped her hand across her brow and said, "It's getting like an oven out here. I feel like an ice cream cone melting. Let's go back inside."

"You can come to our room," Regulus offered suddenly. "We've got cooling charms on it and we can play cards or something if you want."

The three girls looked at each other. "Yes, that sounds like a great idea, Reg," Lily said. Then she looked at Severus. "Do you mind, Sev?"

Severus bit his lip. He normally didn't like other students in his room, he was very private and didn't like anyone prying into his personal life. Regulus and Lily were the sole exceptions to that rule. But maybe he could start to relax a little, after all he would be right there with them, and make sure they didn't touch any of his potions, or the experimental spell scrolls he was working on.

"All right. Follow me."

"Yes, my lord," Regulus drawled lightly, and they laughed.

Severus rolled his eyes. "Funny, Black." Then he led the way back to the castle and down to the dungeons.

Their room was fairly large, it had originally been a single prefect's room, but when Severus had agreed to allow Regulus to room with him, they had cast a space warp spell on it to make it comfortably house two people, so it was now the size of a large suite. It was decorated in Slytherin emerald and silver, of course, with silver walls and emerald curtains at the fake window, which was charmed to have a view of the grounds, even though the dungeons were below the lake. Some smart individual had figured students would go stir-crazy down here without some kind of view of the outside world, and thus had charmed the dorm rooms to display appropriate scenery. The scene changed depending on the weather and the season. Right now it showed a beautiful sunny day.

The first part of the room was a sort of den and study area, with an old leather couch Snape had scrounged from the rubbish heap in High Bentham and used magic to clean up and mend so it looked nearly new. There was an upholstered chair that Reg had brought from his home, it had been shoved in the attic after his mother had redone their living room for the third time and wouldn't be missed. The same was true of the clawfooted mahogany table and the serpent and sword patterned rug. It was an old Celtic design, Regulus thought it had once belonged to a distant ancestor, and it too had been gathering dust in the attic.

Against the lefthand side of the room was Snape's desk. The aged rolltop, another rescue from the rubbish heap, was crowded with pieces of parchment, quills, ink, and books. His bookbag and cauldron were stacked neatly in a corner, along with a shelf of potion ingredients, ready in a moment's notice if he needed to whip up a salve or an elixir in a hurry. The mini lab wasn't strictly legal, but Severus was careful to only brew healing elixirs, for the most part, and hide it with a Concealment Charm if Slughorn, his Head of House, chanced to do an inspection.

Regulus' desk was across the room, in the opposite corner, and it too had books and parchment scattered all over it.

To the right of Severus's desk was a large bookshelf filled with books. He had scrimped and saved to buy most of them, and they were much treasured and lovingly handled. There were four rows of magical texts, mostly dealing with potions, herbals, and defense texts. But there were also some Muggle volumes as well-the complete set of William Shakespeare's works, Dickens, Dante, some of John Locke and Rousseau, several British and Roman histories, including Plutarch's Lives, Homer, Virgil, Ovid, there was even a small volume of Byron and Keats and Coleridge. They rested next to _Hogwarts: A History_ and other wizard texts, including a rather battered copy of _Tales of Beedle the Bard_ , which had been given to him when he was five by Eileen.

When Regulus had first moved in, his jaw had nearly hit the ground when he saw Severus's collection. "Merlin, Snape, you've got your own private library."

"I wish. This is nothing compared to what I _wish_ I had," Severus had answered, his voice sharp with longing. "Someday . . ." he trailed off, not wanting to sound like a daydreaming fool. _Someday, when I've got a decent job and moved away from Spinner's End, I'll be able to afford any book I want. And then I'll be in paradise, all right._ He had glared defensively at the other wizard, daring him to make a derogatory comment about his beloved books.

But Reg had just laughed and said, "Good thing I like to read too." And he had summoned his own library from his trunk and arranged them across from Snape's own. Then he had given his new roommate a pleading stare and asked, "Mind if I borrow a few? You have some I've never read before."

"Yes, so long as you don't damage any of them," Severus had agreed sternly.

"I promise I won't get jam on them, Professor Snape," Reg said slyly, prompting a reluctant chuckle from Severus. He knew he was a bit of a fanatic about his books. But books had been his only companions for years, his solace and joy, until he met Lily, and in a way they still were.

They had placed a large tapestry of Merlin instructing a class of apprentices upon Glastonbury Tor across half of the room, dividing it from their bedroom and the small half bath. The tapestry had been a chance find, the castle steward, Filch, had been about to toss it because it had become threadbare, and they had persuaded him to let them have it.

The beds were the standard four-poster with Slytherin green hangings and Regulus had nicked two small armoires from guest rooms in Grimmauld Place and expanded them so they could hang their robes and school uniforms in them. Those and their trunks were the only bits of furniture in the bedrooms besides the beds. Here Regulus had placed a picture of his family crest above his bed and some posters of Quidditch players and wizard rock bands.

In contrast, Severus had a single piece of framed parchment above his bed, with a single quote by the great Merlin- _Magic's greatest strength comes from within, so be true to thy self, and thy will know true power and harmony._

Alice and Cindy looked thunderstruck when they entered "The Bookworms' Lair", as Avery, a Quidditch Chaser, had dubbed their room, after seeing the amount of books in it.

"Merlin, but this is like . . .like . . .wicked!" Cindy finally managed to say after glancing about like a bug-eyed fish.

Alice nodded. "We don't have anything like this in Gryffindor Tower. Even the prefects still share a dorm with their yearmates."

"Not here," Reg said with a touch of superiority. "Slytherins know how to give the privileges of rank to those who deserve it. The prefects have their own rooms and so do the seventh years." He pretended to bow to the trio of Gryffindor ladies. "Welcome to our humble abode, now take off your shoes, Sev hates mud on the carpet."

"Stuff it, Reg," Severus mock-growled, cuffing the other playfully about the head.

"What? It's true. You bawled me out for twenty minutes last time I came back from Quidditch practice and forgot to wipe my feet," said Regulus, mischief dancing in his eyes.

"You looked like a bogman and the stench was unbelievable," Severus objected.

"So I fell off my broom and landed in a mud puddle." Reg shrugged, smirking. "There was no need to tear into me like my mother, Snape."

Severus gave him an exasperated glare. "If you'd quit acting like an eight-year-old, Regulus, I wouldn't need to lecture you that way. Now get in here and tend to your face, before you give some first year nightmares." He dragged the younger wizard into the room and closed the door.

"Hey! It's not that bad. Sirius only managed to get in three good ones," Regulus protested.

"Bad enough. Sit." Severus ordered briskly, summoning his potions and a cloth and a basin of water with a flick of his wand. Regulus obeyed, sitting in his desk chair.

Regulus eyed Snape's array of vials warily. "You going to put any of that stinging stuff on me? Because I really hate that crap, Sev."

"Don't be a baby, Black. The antibacterial salve only stings for a minute." He took Regulus's chin in his hand and began to wash the bruised and bloodied face.

"Like hell." Regulus made as if to jerk away.

"Keep still!"

"You're not putting it on me this time, Snape."

"Black, act your age! Or do I need to Stick you to the chair again?"

"Here. Let me do it," Cindy suggested.

Severus eyed her critically. "Have you ever had any healing courses, Graves?"

"No, but I've got two younger brothers and two sisters, Snape, so I think I know how to fix up a couple of scrapes." She took the cloth from him and began cleaning Regulus up expertly.

The younger wizard remained still then, allowing the witch to doctor him without a whimper.

"Figures. He gives me a hard time and not her. He forgets who fixed him all those other times," Severus grumbled, half under his breath.

"That's 'cause she's a cute girl, Sev," Lily murmured into his ear. "He'd let her cut off his arm and not make a sound."

"Merlin save me!" groaned Severus, though he admitted to himself that it made sense. No self-respecting boy wanted a girl to think he was a wimp and couldn't take a little pain. He beckoned Alice and Lily to sit down on the couch, leaving his friend to Cindy's tender mercies. "Uh . . .do you two want anything to drink? I can have some pumpkin juice or butterbeer up here if you'd like," he offered shyly.

"Please," Alice said.

Severus summoned a house elf by tugging on a small tassled bell pull and requested several pumpkin juices and butterbeers, one for each of them. "And some shortbread too, Watson. Thanks."

"Right away, Master Snape," the elf bowed and disappeared.

Alice raised an eyebrow. "You thank the house elves, Snape?"

"Yes. They're performing a service for me," Severus answered.

Two minutes later a tray appeared on the table, filled with the drinks, shortbread, small sandwiches of bacon and watercress, and strawberry tarts.

"Help yourself," Severus gestured at the table and the girls eagerly took a drink and a sandwich.

Regulus and Cindy soon joined them, Regulus now looked much better with his face cleaned and magical salve applied. "Well? Looks like you survived," Severus drawled.

"It makes a difference, a woman's touch," Regulus pointed out, sitting down on the other end of the couch. Cindy sat beside him, giggling, her hand resting lightly on Black's arm.

"Why do I get the feeling more than just applying salve went on?" Severus wondered aloud, sitting next to Lily.

"With Graves, that's a given," Alice laughed. "She probably gave him a kiss for every cut he had. Like she does to her little brothers and sisters."

"And what's wrong with that, Stewart?" Cindy demanded. "A kiss to make it better."

" _He's_ not your brother, Cin."

"Thank Merlin for that!" the other grinned.

"You can say that again," added Regulus, his hazel eyes dancing. He gave Cindy a very appreciative look.

"See what we have to put up with?" Lily groaned. "She's impossible."

"So's he," Severus remarked, and Regulus glared at him.

"Works like a charm. I feel great now," Regulus said, smirking.

"Wonderful," Severus rolled his eyes. "Now where did you put the deck of cards, Reg?"

"Uh . . .somewhere," answered the other helpfully. "Hang on a moment." He summoned the deck of Exploding Snap and laid it on the table.

They played several hands, until all the drinks and snacks were gone, and then Alice yawned and said she wanted to go back to Gryffindor and take a nap before dinner.

"Yeah, got to get your beauty sleep, Stewart. You want to look good for Longbottom later," Lily teased.

Alice blushed, but came back with, "How about you, Lil? You don't want Severus to see you looking like an old hag."

"Beauty is only skin deep," Lily sniffed, pretending to be insulted. "Right, Sev?"

"Absolutely," he murmured, then kissed her goodbye. "Meet me later at the lake," he whispered, and received a nod in return.

Cindy gave Regulus a kiss, much to his delight, and then followed Alice out the door.

"See you at dinner," Lily waved and then departed as well.

They passed several Slytherin boys, mostly fourth and fifth years, lounging in the common room as they made their way to the portrait hole, and as they were leaving, they heard one exclaim, "Merlin's bloody arse, Snape, what were you having, an orgy or something?"

"You could have invited us," whined another.

" _Three_ girls! Merlin! Maybe we ought to let the Marauders beat us up."

Severus cast them a withering glare and shut the door. "Barbarians, the lot of them!" he muttered.

"Jealous," Regulus told him, and the two exchanged identical smirks, for until that afternoon the only thing their Housemates had ever envied them for were their brains and potion-making skills.

"Stupid. There are wards to prevent any student from having sex in the castle."

"Good thing too, else Potter would probably be a father by now. Or Sirius, Merlin help me!" Regulus said, then added with a sigh, "Ah, well. One can dream. Right, Sev?"

Severus did not answer, he was already wishing he knew of a spell to speed up time.

By the time the first stars of evening brightened the sky, Severus was only too happy to flee the castle and follow the path down to the lake, where Lily awaited him. After dinner, he had planned on studying for his last OWL-Transfiguration, but his plan had been shot all to blazes when Regulus ended up getting into another quarrel with Sirius at the dungeon entrance.

Sirius had accused Regulus of going dark again, being Sorted into the House with the most dark wizards ever, including You-Know-Who. "Otherwise you'd have been in Gryffindor, like me, and maybe you'd learn how to be a real man, instead of a nerdy bookworm that hangs around bad influences like Snape, Rosier, and LeStrange. Learn any good dark curses lately, Reg? I hear Rosier knows some nice ones."

"Shut up, Sirius! You don't know what the hell you're talking about!" Regulus had screamed, totally losing it. "Just leave me alone." He had turned to go down the stairs, but Sirius had grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him back around to face him.

"Don't walk away from me, Regulus. I'm not finished talking yet." Sirius growled.

"Well, I am! Let go of me!"

"No. For once you're going to shut that damn mouth of yours and listen to me. Quit hanging around rejects like Snape and the rest of them, little brother. Start thinking for yourself and don't just be a pureblooded arsehole, like Mum wants you to be. It's not worth it. You hear me?"

"I hear you, Siri," Regulus said sullenly, hunching himself away from his older brother. Then he gathered himself and cried, "For your information, big brother, Snape isn't dark and neither am I. And it's not a crime to be proud of who your family is. What's your problem, Sirius? You're always going on about thinking for yourself, but you don't practice what you preach. You follow Potter's lead like a puppy-you, Lupin, and Pettigrew. If Potter says hex someone, you ask who, if Potter asks you to jump, you ask how high, hell, if Potter told you he wanted to kick your arse, you'd bend over, I'll bet. The lot of you get your jollies by bullying other students, and then acting like it was a big joke. So where do you get off telling me how I should act, or who I ought to be friends with, huh?"

Regulus's pointed barb struck home, and Sirius lost his temper. He punched his brother in the jaw, nearly knocking him down the stairs. Regulus was saved from a nasty tumble only by Severus's quick reflexes, casting a Levitation Charm. Once he was assured Regulus was all right, Severus had spun on the elder Black, confronting Sirius nose to nose.

"Merlin's staff, Black! You nearly knocked him down the stairs! If he'd hit his head . . ."

"Too bad he didn't. There'd be one less Death Eater in the world, Snivellus."

"Black, you stupid imbecile! Weren't you listening to a word he said? Just because he's Slytherin doesn't mean he's a dark wizard."

"No? With the way he's going, it won't be long." Sirius gritted out. "Like I said, too bad he didn't break his neck. It'd save me the trouble of telling my father his precious baby boy joined You-Know-Who and watching him fall apart." Then Sirius stalked away, leaving Severus to deal with Regulus and longing to throttle Sirius for being such a stubborn dunderhead.

He had managed to get the younger wizard into their room before Regulus self-combusted, but only just.

"I HATE him! I bloody damn HATE him!" Regulus howled, hitting the wall so hard several books on his side of the room fell onto the floor and the cabinet with Severus' potions shook and threatened to spill.

Severus hastily cast a charm on them to fasten them to the shelf, then a Muffliato Charm so Regulus could rant in peace without the rest of the House overhearing him, and lastly he locked the door.

Regulus continued to swear for several minutes, slamming his hand into the wall over and over until his knuckles bled, until Severus cast a Cushioning Charm over it. He hit the wall a few more times before halting abruptly and leaning his head against it, breathing harshly. "I hate him," he muttered, his voice catching sharply.

"Reg, stop," Severus ordered softly. He tugged on the other's shoulder, leading him over to the couch. "He's not worth it."

Regulus sat down at Severus's urging, but abruptly he turned away, drawing his knees to his chest and hiding his face in them. "Go away, Severus. Please. I want to be alone."

Severus hesitated, not sure if he should leave his friend in this state. "Regulus . . ."

"Leave me alone, Snape! Just go! Go meet Lily or study or whatever. Get out!"

"All right. But I'll be back soon. Don't do anything stupid, Black." He rested a hand on Regulus's shoulder for a moment.

There came a muffled snort. "Don't worry, I'm not going to off myself. I wouldn't give _him_ the satisfaction."

Severus listened hard, and upon hearing the sincerity in his voice, decided it was safe to meet Lily. "I'll be back."

"Fine. Go, Snape!"

Severus did, but not before casting another silent charm that blunted any sharp object within a five foot radius of Regulus. Better safe than sorry. When he glanced briefly over his shoulder, he saw Regulus lift his head from his knees, and the hazel eyes were filled with desolation and tears. Then he put his head back down, his shoulders shaking.

Severus nearly stayed then, but he knew Regulus would be mortified if Snape witnessed him crying. He shook his head, wishing there were something he could say to help his friend, but for once his clever brain couldn't come up with a remark to salve Regulus's wounded spirit. _Damn you, Black! You and your stupid Gryffindor prejudice! You're going to drive him straight down the dark path if you don't lay off, you bloody fool!_

He closed the door behind him, leaving Regulus alone to cry and curse his brother in peace, and slipped out of the castle by a secret passage.

Once outside, he paused to collect himself and take several deep breaths, not wanting to see Lily as he was now, all angry over recent events and longing to hex certain individuals till they howled. When he had calmed somewhat, and the only racing his heart was doing was because of anticipation and longing, he set off across the lawn towards the lake.

Lily and he had stumbled upon a semi-private spot inbetween two willows and a screen of some kind of hedge Severus didn't know the name of, it was cozy and pleasant and just right for a meeting between two friends. _Make that my . . . girlfriend,_ he amended with a flash of pleasure. That was not something he had ever dreamed he would ever have . . .a girl who cared enough about him to call him hers, and be seen in public with him, holding hands and kissing and laughing with him, not _at_ him. And willing to defend him from the popular crowd, like Potter and Black.

Musing on the events of the afternoon made him flush hot and cold, partly in embarrassment at the way Potter and Black had humiliated him, although by now he ought to be used to it, he thought disparagingly. It occurred almost every day, unless he was watchful. And he hadn't particularly cared for having to be rescued by a girl, but the twinges of embarrassment were eclipsed by the sheer delight in knowing that Lily truly cared about him as more than just a friend. _She likes me better than Potter, who has girls falling at his feet and in his lap every time he turns around. Potter, the brilliant Quidditch Chaser, teacher's pet . . .Dumbledore's Golden Boy. And she said I was worth ten of him. Me, Severus Tobias Snape, the sarcastic sharp-tongued outcast with barely two Knuts to rub together, the half-blood freak, as my father would say. And she likes **me**_.

He pinched himself hard, just to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Then he winced and snorted at his own foolishness. Still, it was hard to believe that the girl he had always admired and adored now liked him as . . .well . . .a boyfriend. He couldn't quite recall when it was that he started looking at Lily, bright sweet Lily, as more than just a friend. One day he had been in class, brewing a potion with her, and their hands had brushed and he had felt . . .a shock, like lightning, run up his arm. And suddenly he couldn't take his eyes off her. It had utterly bewildered him at first. And scared him, for he didn't want Lily to think he was being forward, and would start slobbering all over her and groping her like some of the other boys did their girlfriends . . .but he longed to run his fingers through her hair and to cup her face in his hands and kiss her until they were breathless. But he hadn't dared.

Until last December, when she had accepted his awkward invitation to the Yule Ball. Then he had known it was all right if he allowed his true feelings to show, that she wouldn't reject him flat, and he had danced with her and kissed her and that evening had been one of the happiest of his fourteen years.

He smiled reminiscently and slipped on cat's feet to the willow that overhung the lake, peering warily around before climbing halfway up the tree and looking down into the little hollow made by the trees and the hedge.

Lily was there, sitting upon the ground, tapping a finger against her knee impatiently.

Smirking, Severus slipped around the tree and landed on the ground behind her, soundlessly. Then he reached out and playfully tapped her on the shoulder.

She gasped and nearly fell over.

"Waiting for someone?"

She spun around. "Severus Snape! You nearly gave me heart failure. What were you thinking?"

"That you were getting sick of waiting for me and I'd better get my arse down here quick," he replied, laughing. "Sorry I'm late. Reg got into another fight with Sirius and I had to calm him down."

"Not again! Is he okay?" Lily groaned.

"Not really. His prat of a brother punched him and nearly sent him flying down the stairs, but he's more upset than hurt. The git said he wished Reg broke his neck, that way he wouldn't need to explain to their father why Reg ended up a Death Eater."

"He _didn't_!" Lily cried. She had enjoyed meeting the younger Black, finding him clever without being arrogant and witty as well, but not cruel. "That's awful! How could he say such things to his own brother?"

Severus shrugged. "He's Sirius Black, that's how. Thinks he knows everything, like his best friend, Potter. I'm surprised Reg hasn't throttled him by now. Merlin knows, I would have."

"Poor Regulus! I'd like to smack Sirius upside the head," Lily declared angrily.

"Hey, take it easy." Severus murmured, stepping very close to her, his hands reaching out to take her own. "Forget about Black, you can slap him silly later. He isn't why I asked you to meet me here, Lily."

"Oh?" She tilted her head back until she was looking directly into his eyes. "Why did you ask me here, Sev?"

"So we could talk and I could do . . .this." His hands released hers swiftly, coming up to cradle her face and then he was kissing her, a gentle flirting at first, uncertainly, but then she clasped his head and kissed him back, and fire ignited in his blood and his awkwardness vanished as he realized that she wanted him.

The kiss deepened, and Severus drowned in the sweetness, unable to recall where he ended and she began. He had never known such overwhelming desire in all of his life and it both frightened and awed him, that one little red-haired witch could cause him to feel so . . .incredible.

Lily tightened her hold on him when he would have drawn away, not wanting it to end. Merlin, she had been kissed twice by other boys, though one of those had been stolen by Potter and she didn't think it counted, but none of their kisses had ever made her feel as if she was going to spontaneously combust. She felt as if she had just fallen off the top of a high mountain, there was an odd sensation in her stomach, like falling, but she was not afraid. _Merlin, but who knew he could kiss like this? Where did he learn?_ She wondered dizzily, gasping for breath.

He drew away, his dark eyes burning with barely leashed passion. "Lily . . .I . . .are you all right?"

"All right? Sev, I'm ten times better than all right," she laughed.

"Oh, good. Because I was afraid I was . . .too rough."

"Never. Where did you learn to kiss like that?"

"Like what? It was horrible, wasn't it? I did it wrong . . " he felt the old inadequacy well up and he jerked away, his face burning. _Snape, you idiot! You should have looked at that book Reg had, instead of assuming you could learn on your own. Now look what you've done. She probably wishes she never came here tonight, you hopeless git-_

"Severus!" Lily grabbed his shoulder, pulling him around to face her. "You didn't do it wrong at all, love. You were perfect."

"I was?" he repeated dazedly. "But I've never . . .this is the first time I've ever really kissed . . .well except for the Yule Ball . . ."

"Sev, trust me. You're a natural." She twined her fingers in his hair, which was silky, not greasy like everyone assumed.

"I am?"

"Don't believe me, huh? All right, let's try it again. Practice makes perfect, not that you need much practice," she whispered and then her mouth found his again.

When they could breathe again, she snuggled into his arms and laid her head on his shoulder and said, " _Now_ do you believe me, you silly snake?"

He gazed down at her, wonder mingled with desire in his eyes, and answered, "Yes. Lily, I . . .I . . .you make me feel so . . .I don't know how to say it . . .but when I'm with you, like this, I feel . . .complete." Inwardly, he cursed his awkward tongue. Why was it that he always managed to sound like a blithering idiot around her, when at every other time his tongue was lightning quick to give an insult or the answer to a question? _Some romantic you are, Snape! You've read Shakespeare a hundred times and you can't come up with anything better than that?_ "I can't believe that you're here, with me, when you could have been with any other boy in Hogwarts."

"Severus, no other boy is you, don't you see that?" she inquired softly.

He laughed softly. "Amazing. That you choose the Slytherin outcast, who most girls wouldn't give the time of day . . ."

"Stop it, Sev!" she ordered. "Don' t talk that way! You're none of those things." She moistened her lips, then quoted passionately, " _Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind._ Remember that, Sev?"

" _A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 1,_ " he responded automatically.

"Exactly. And _that's_ how I love you, Severus Snape. I'm a Seer, I saw you true the first time we met, down at the park. I always have."

His mouth twitched into a reluctant grin. "Seems like you know me better than I know myself."

"Of course. I'm a woman," she chuckled. "We know everything."

"I know one thing, though."

"What?"

He drew in a breath, then said softly, "That I shall love you always. _Doubt thou the stars are fire, doubt that the sun doth move, doubt truth to be a liar, but never doubt I love you, Lily."_

"I never will. Because any boy that can quote Shakespeare to his girlfriend really loves her," she whispered. She shifted in his arms. "Kiss me again, Sev."

He dipped his head, his heart soaring. The ancient wizards and witches had been right when they said a midsummer night had magic in it. He could feel it with every beat of his heart, with every touch of Lily's hands, with every kiss they shared. It flared like wildfire through him, consuming him, but he welcomed its sweet ecstasy.

Somehow, he ended up on the ground, Lily in his lap, laughing like an idiot, drunk on sensation, every nerve in his body quivering. "Dear sweet Merlin, Lily!"

"You can say _that_ again, love!" she smiled lazily, both temptress and goddess, and he knew then he was lost, his heart given into her keeping, never to be reclaimed.

"Lily flower, what should we do now?" he murmured, one hand caressing her fiery tresses.

She leaned back into his hand. "Mmm. You have magic hands, Sev."

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked playfully, his voice going husky. "I am, after all, a wizard."

"What should we do about what, Sev?"

"Us. I don't mean just at school. I mean at home. Now that we're dating."

"Well, I guess we should tell our parents. Or at least you could tell your mum," she amended, knowing full well that his father wouldn't be interested in his son's social life. She giggled softly. "Will she be surprised, do you think?"

Severus shook his head. "No. She's like you sometimes, Lil. She knows things without being told. I couldn't get away with anything when I was little, she always knew when I was up to no good. The only one she was never able to read was my father, don't ask me why." His lip curled in disgust. Then he shook his head. "Anyway, when you tell yours, should I be there?"

"If you'd like. Mum will be over the moon, she was beginning to worry since I didn't have a boyfriend yet and I was nearly sixteen."

"She think you were a lesbian?"

Lily burst out laughing. "Merlin, who knows? I don't think she even knows what that is. I think she thought I was just being too picky. But I wasn't going to date just anyone. She used to try and fix me up with some of her friends' sons."

"Oh God, that must have been awful."

"It was. I felt like a prize peacock at a fair. And none of them were right for me. It used to annoy her so. "Lily Anne, what are you waiting for?" she used to ask and I would say "the right one". Little did I know the right one was two houses down from me." She gave him a flippant grin. "Don't worry, Sev. It'll be all right. Mum always liked you."

"Felt sorry for me, you mean."

"No. She likes you, Severus." Lily corrected firmly.

"And your father?" he asked uncertainly. He had only met Henry Evans a handful of times, the man was usually at work when he came over Lily's house.

"Umm . . .Dad might be a bit . . .intimidating at first, but he'll get over it. He grilled Vernon for about fifteen minutes before finally agreeing to let him date Tuney, and that was it."

Somehow, Severus was sure it would not go as smoothly with him, though he hoped it would. "Your sister's still dating that fat prig?"

Lily made a face. "Yes. I really don't like him. He's an overbearing snob. But Tuney thinks he walks on water and won't listen to me when I tell he he's too controlling. She thinks a strong man makes all the decisions. I say a strong man lets his girlfriend decide for herself and doesn't need to boss her about like a puppet."

He traced her cheek with a finger. "You're right. I will never act like that, Lily. I love your independence. And I'd never ever hit you. I'm not like Tobias."

"Oh, Sev. You think I don't know that? I could never love a man who hurt a woman. You might be his son, Severus, but you're nothing like your father."

"Not quite. I have his damn temper, and his mouth too. But I'm working on it, Lil. And you can tell your dad that I don't drink and I never will. That's why mine is the way he is. But not me. That much I can promise. And I always keep my promises."

"I know. Quit worrying, Snape, you'll give yourself gray hairs." She relaxed into his chest, feeling warm and safe and utterly cherished.

He lay back against the trunk of the willow, Lily cradled close, and vowed not to dwell on tomorrow. Tonight was all that mattered. For the first time in his life, Severus Snape was truly happy. His lonely heart had found its home at last. And nothing was ever going to come between them, he vowed. Not House rivalries, or disapproving parents, or anything.

They sat together, reveling in each other's presence, not speaking for several long moments, until they heard the bell ring for curfew. Severus groaned. "Blast! We have to go back."

Lily sighed, reluctantly rising to her feet. "I know. I wish we didn't. I could just sleep out here all night in your arms," she suggested wickedly.

"I wouldn't mind that at all," he smirked mischievously. "But your mother might." He stretched and climbed to his feet. "Come on, Lily flower. I'll walk you back."

They slipped from the hollow, running quickly and silently over the grass. Both were sorry their little interlude had come to an end, but somehow that made it more precious, for stolen moments were rare and therefore cherished.

Severus walked her all the way to Gryffindor Tower, giving her one last scorching kiss before bidding her good night. "Pleasant dreams, Lily."

"Good night, sweet Prince," she laughed, knowing he would get the reference, punning on his mother's maiden name.

He smiled, smothering a laugh, then turned and hurried back to the dungeons, hoping he would be able to manage to get some sleep, otherwise Merlin only knew what kind of grade he would get on his OWL tomorrow.

He crawled inside the Slytherin portrait hole. Some of his yearmates, like Avery, were still awake, playing chess. Avery glanced over and flashed him a knowing grin.

"Where you been, Snape? Snogging that hot little number Evans?"

Severus ignored the question, he wasn't one to brag about his conquests. What was between him and Lily was not for public gossip. He headed to his room, pretending not to hear the whistles and catcalls.

"Looks that way, Avery," hooted Rodolphus LeStrange, a handsome brown-haired boy. "He looks like a cat that swallowed the canary."

"Yeah, only time I've ever seen him look like that is when he's been brewing potions for Slughorn," remarked another.

"Looks like little Snapey has finally figured out what to do with a girl besides look at her," roared Evan Rosier. "Was she any good, Snape? I hear those Gryffindor girls are like animals. She bite you much, Snape?"

Severus felt his temper spike. He spun around, his wand out, and spat a Silencing Charm. "Keep your filthy comments to yourself, Rosier. Or else I'll glue your tongue to the roof of your mouth, got me?"

Rosier nodded, shrinking away from Severus, whose eyes burned black fire.

"There's no such spell, Snape," muttered Avery.

"Then I'll invent it," Severus stated coldly. "So keep your mouth off my girlfriend."

Then he turned away and entered his room, locking it securely behind him.

Regulus was sprawled on the couch, looking as if he had cried himself to sleep, his dark hair all mussed and rumpled, and a slight bruise on his jaw.

Severus sighed, then transfigured his friend's robes into a set of pajamas and tucked a blanket about him. "Good night, Reg," he murmured, then slipped into his four poster and Noxed the lamp. He was certain his dreams would be pleasant and much better than those of his friend's, for once.

**So did you like Sev and Lily's little tryst?**

**The quotes from Shakespeare came from A Midsummer Night's Dream and Hamlet.**

**How did you like Sev & Reg's room? And who feels sorry for Reg?**

**Oh, one more thing-the squid never had a name in the books, so I called him Decius-from the Latin for ten. I thought it was appropriate.**


	6. Hero-Worship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reg and Severus have a convo about Sirius, and the fifth years get their OWL scores

Severus woke the next morning to find Reg studying his face in the bathroom mirror, probing his sore jaw gingerly.

"Want some salve for that?"

"Huh? Oh, no, it's not that bad." Regulus shrugged. "At least this time he didn't knock out any of my teeth. When I was little, he pushed me and I hit my face into the wrought iron railing on my front porch, and I got my front tooth knocked right out. My mother was furious. She walloped Sirius good that time, if I remember right."

"Sounds like nothing's changed. All right, if you're sure." Severus turned about and began to dress. It was only after he had walked into the den that he saw breakfast upon the table. "Reg, why are we having breakfast here today?"

"Felt like it," his roommate called. "I didn't want to go down to the hall and risk running into my idiot older brother right now. I'm still in the mood to hex him after yesterday." The water began running, and Severus could hear the unmistakable sound of Reg brushing his teeth.

Severus supposed that made sense, and the only reason he had wanted to go down to the hall today was so he could see Lily. Then he shook his head in half-amused disgust. _Severus, you're acting like a lovesick fool. You won't asphyxiate if you don't get to see Lily for a few hours. You should be concentrating on your Transfiguration OWL._ He quietly began to serve himself breakfast from the covered dishes upon the table.

Today there was oatmeal with cinnamon and cream, bacon, a cheese and chive omelet, ham, and toast with blueberry preserves, as well as Irish breakfast tea and juice. Severus took a few strips of bacon, oatmeal and a small piece of the omelet, as well as some juice.

He discovered he was ravenous, and had eaten nearly his whole plate before Regulus joined him.

The other Slytherin ate more slowly, mindful of his sore jaw, choosing some oatmeal, toast, and bacon and drinking two glasses of juice. "So, how did your, uh, meeting with Lily go?"

Severus allowed himself a small smile. "It was . . .perfect. Well, at least my version of perfect. She kissed me again and we, uh, talked about telling her parents and my mother about us when we go back home."

"Good for you, Sev! You deserve her, and I'm glad that for once a girl has sense to see past the end of her nose and not fall for another pretty face or a glorious Quidditch player. You're lucky that you live next door to her though, Severus. Then you can get closer over the summer. Wish I had that option."

"Yes . . .if everything goes well with her parents," Severus replied, chewing his lower lip slightly. He worried that Henry Evans wouldn't approve of his youngest daughter dating the son of one of the town drunks. "But I'll worry about that later. Cindy Graves looked like she enjoyed your company, Reg. You could owl her over the holiday."

"Maybe. But we don't live near each other, and she used to go out with Potter. She's a year older than me, Severus, I don't know if it'll work. With my luck, she'll start going out with Sirius." Regulus stared moodily at his plate and toyed idly with a piece of toast, crumbling it inbetween his fingers.

"Not if she's smart, she won't. She ought to know who the better brother is, Regulus."

Regulus chuckled softly. "Only you would ever say that, Snape. Everyone else loves Siri because of his attitude and his pranks." The younger Black sighed heavily. "I used to also, back before he went to Hogwarts. We weren't always at each other's throats like we are now. Oh, we got into the occasional scrap, but mostly I admired him." Regulus's hazel eyes held a faraway look. "When I was little, I used to follow him everywhere, and do everything he did. He was my big brother and I wanted to be just like him. He used to protect me from some of my older cousins, when they teased me and stuff. He turned my cousin Bellatrix's hair into a nest of snakes with a potion he slipped in her pumpkin juice because she said I was an annoying brat and locked me in the broom cupboard with a huge spider. I was about six, and ever since I hate spiders." Regulus shuddered slightly. "But Siri heard me screaming and let me out and then he got revenge on Bella."

"Did he get in trouble for it?"

"Yes, once they found out who did it. But he didn't care, told my Uncle Cygnus flat out that Bella had locked me in the broom cupboard and all, and she got in trouble too. But all that changed when he met James, he was eight, I was seven, and all of a sudden I was in the way, the annoying bratty brother. "

Regulus's eyes darkened. _"I want to play Quidditch too, Siri. Why can't I?" he recalled asking one sunny afternoon._

_"You're too little, that's why. Now go play somewhere else, Reg."_

_"I am not! I can too play!"_

_"No, you can't! You're a brat, and I want to play with James, now go away and quit bothering me, Reg! Go and read a book or something. Get lost, brat!"_

_Hurt, he wandered off and had gotten lost on the Potter estate, which was much larger than Grimauld Place, and when he was finally found by the frantic adults, he was scared and the first thing he had blurted when they asked why he had wandered away was, "Siri told me to get lost."_

_Of course, Sirius got punished for not watching his little brother and being mean to him, and that had caused even more resentment between the two siblings._

"I can remember wishing that I was brave like him. He could pull the most annoying pranks, and when faced with either of my parents, just shrug and laugh off whatever punishment he got, even when my mother switched him. Me, I hated it when my parents yelled at me, and once when I tried to play a prank like Sirius, it went wrong and I blew up my Aunt Lucretia's birthday cake. It went all over everyone, and at first everyone thought it was funny. They also thought Sirius did it, until I confessed, and then my mother nearly had heart failure." Regulus shook his head, a rueful smirk on his face. "I can still hear her scolding me, and the switching I got from her was nothing to be laughed at. I tried to be brave but I ended up crying like a baby, and that was the only time I was ever switched, because I was too scared to risk another one. Sirius used to call me a coward crybaby, but I couldn't help it." Regulus dropped his eyes to the tabletop.

"Reg, you're being ridiculous. You're no coward, just because you didn't want to get your arse tanned. Name me one kid that likes getting beaten and I'll eat my potions book." Severus said quietly. "I'll bet Sirius hated it too, only he wouldn't admit it to you, because he needed to look brave in front of his younger brother."

"Maybe. All I know is that Sirius was a rebel, gave my mother fits, and he still does. Argues with her constantly, says she's a cold-hearted pureblooded hag, but he's wrong. She's proud and strict, but she cares for both of us, only he's never seen that. He thinks she favors me, calls me a suck up because I won't argue about Muggleborn rights and that kind of thing with her, but what's the point? She is the way she is, and it doesn't do any good to antagonize her. Siri never understood that. He just keeps at her until she snaps, and then he blames her when she loses it."

"Humph! He's always blaming someone else, instead of owning up to his mistakes," Severus snorted.

Reg sighed. "My father is more easygoing, he doesn't mind Siri's attitude, but it drives Mother crazy. She thinks he has no respect for authority and she's right, in a way. She thinks it's her fault, that he's like that, I heard her say it to herself once, after he'd gone to school and ended up in Gryffindor."

He shut his eyes, his mother's soft words echoing in his head, _"Where did I go wrong? Merlin, how is it that a son of mine could disregard everything I ever tried to teach him? I've failed him as a mother, Merlin help me,"_ and then he had seen her weeping, and it had horrified him, that his mother was crying, and somehow it was Sirius's fault.

It was then that he resolved to be the son his mother wanted, the son Sirius refused to be, the son who was proud of his heritage and his family and would never make his mother cry that way ever.

"Of course, Siri thinks it's great, that he's in a rival House, he figures it's a great way to thumb his nose at everything my mother stands for . . .at everything our family stands for." Regulus corrected. "See, we're pureblood, but it's more than that. The Black name . . .it might seem like we're stuck up, but it's a fact that my family has produced some of the finest wizards in Britain, and we have a tradition to uphold. My mother used to say that to be a Black was to be the best, and we should always strive to live up to our potential. Which meant taking pride in who we were and what we became, and marrying well."

Severus arched an eyebrow. "She doesn't ask for much, does she?"

Regulus laughed. "I know, she sounds like a damn snob, and she can be, but well, nobody's perfect. Though we _do_ try," he added, smirking. "My family believes in the supremacy of the pureblood, an ancestor of ours claimed that the only way to become a great wizarding family was to remain pure in blood and deed, which is why my family doesn't believe in marrying anyone of mixed ancestry."

"And you, Reg?" Severus questioned. "Do you believe that?"

"Once I did. But not any more," Regulus said honestly. "I haven't since you rescued me that day, Severus. I'd never met anyone except purebloods until I came to Hogwarts. And then I found out who my true friends were. You and Lily Evans." His hazel eyes glittered. "How ironic. Mother would be furious. But this once, I don't care."

"Maybe you're more of a rebel than you think, Reg." Severus said. "Are all your family Slytherins then?"

"We're mostly Slytherin, though a few of us have been Ravenclaws, and I think even a Hufflepuff or two as well, but the majority of us are serpents because of our ambition to be the best, _not_ because we follow You-Know-Who. None of my family has ever turned to darkness . . .or if one has, I never knew of it. But Sirius got it into his head, don't ask me how, that if you're Sorted into Slytherin, you're going to become a dark disciple one way or another. And nothing I bloody say will convince him he's wrong, the stubborn arse."

"Sounds like he has more than his share of the Black pride, Reg," Severus pointed out.

"Yes. He's more like my mother than either of them will ever admit, because he always thinks he's right too." Regulus took a swallow of juice. "The big prat has us pegged for Death Eaters, and I'm sick to death of defending myself to him. Next time he starts his crap, Sev, I'm just going to jinx him. Maybe if I do it enough times, he'll realize he's wrong. Our motto's "Always pure" not "Always dark." Why can't he see that, dammit? Why?"

Severus did not answer, knowing Regulus wasn't really asking. It was times like these that he was grateful he was an only child. He had enough trouble with Tobias hating him, he didn't need a brother that felt the same way. Except, a small part of him whispered, what if it wasn't like that? What if he had a brother like Reg, who admired and understood him?

"It's almost time for class," he realized then, and summoned his robe with a lazy flick of his wand.

"Right. Sorry, didn't mean to blab on and on that way." Regulus apologized, blushing faintly.

"Why are you apologizing, Black?" queried Severus. "If you were boring me, I would have told you so." He gave the other a slight smirk.

"Thanks, Sev." Reg turned to get his own robe from where he had hung it over the couch.

Just then there came a knock at the door of their suite. "Black, your brother is at the portrait hole. Says he wants to speak with you or something."

Regulus froze. Then he scowled. "Tell him I'm not interested in talking to him. If he wants to speak to me, send me an owl."

"Black, do I look like your messenger?"

"Look, just tell him what I said, Avery," Regulus ordered angrily. "Because if I go out there right now, I might be tempted to punch him out, and you don't want your Seeker in detention again, do you, Avery?"

There was a muttered explicative from the other Quidditch player. "All right, Black, but only this once, mind! I'm not going to play owl post for you again, I don't care what the hell ancestors you have, my _lord_."

Then they heard Avery depart.

Severus's mouth quirked up. "Send you an owl? Somehow I don't think your brother is going to take that well."

"Too damn bad. I meant what I said. I'm not in the mood to talk to him face to face, Sev. Not after what he said. Maybe if he bloody apologizes, then we'll see."

Severus turned to gather up his books and put them in his bag, knowing the best thing he could do now was to keep out of this family quarrel.

_An hour previous_

_Gryffindor Tower:_

"Can you believe the cheek of the little twerp?" Sirius was telling James what had happened by the staircase last night with Regulus. "He dares to lecture _me_ -his older brother-about my friends when he hangs around the scum of the dungeons. I should have taught him a good lesson, Prongs."

Before James could reply to that statement, an angry soprano broke in, unable to keep still any longer. "I think _you're_ the one who needs a lesson, Sirius Black, in how to treat your brother!" Lily flared, coming over to where the two were sitting at an empty table in the common room. "Why don't you tell James how you nearly knocked him down the stairs? He could have been hurt badly, and when Severus reminded you of it, what did you say? Did you say you were sorry? No, you said you wished he'd broke his neck! What kind of awful thing is that to wish on your only brother, Black?"

"You don't understand, Evans. Regulus is an annoying pureblooded little viper," began Sirius defensively.

Lily just glared at him. "So? He's still your little brother. Doesn't that mean anything to you, Black? I thought all you purebloods regarded family as the most important thing. But you . . .you don't seem to give a damn about yours."

"Because they don't give a damn about me!" snapped Sirius. "Reg's a pain in my arse, always has been."

"And that's reason to wish he was dead?" Lily repeated in disbelief. "I have an older sister, Sirius, and sometimes we fight like cats and dogs, and I know she resents me for having magic, and she thinks my parents favor me, but she would _never_ wish me dead! How could you say that and not feel bad?"

"I . . .look, Evans, it's not that I don't feel bad . . ."

"She's right, Padfoot," Remus spoke up from where he was sitting nearby. "That was way out of line. You never should have said that."

Sirius shot him an annoyed glare. "Oh, real nice, Lupin. Take the little mama's boy's side. I was trying to tell him what he ought to do and he was ignoring me."

"Of course he was, Black," Lily interrupted. "Because you were telling him he was destined to become a dark wizard, just because he's in Slytherin. And you told him not to be friends with Severus too, who seems to care more about him than you do."

Sirius eyed her angrily. "Just how the hell do you know all this, Evans? Reg run to you and give you a sob story? Or maybe you saw it in your crystal ball?"

Lily drew herself up, temper flickering in her green eyes. "What does it matter? You ought to apologize to your brother, Sirius. It was cruel, what you said."

Sirius huffed, knowing she was right, but unwilling to admit it.

"She's right, mate," James said suddenly. "I know Regulus can be a major arsehole sometimes, but he _is_ your kid brother. What you said . . .that's harsh, Padfoot, even for you."

"You too, James?"

James spread his hands. "Look, Siri, it's none of my business, really, but I think you let your temper run away with your mouth. And if the little idiot goes and gets himself killed or something, you'll regret it forever."

"No, I won't," Sirius muttered sulkily.

"Yes, you will," Remus put in. "Because he's your brother, when all's said and done."

The elder Black scowled down at the tabletop, angry at his friends and angry at himself for allowing them to talk him into going and apologizing to Regulus, the impudent prat. "Bloody little know-it-all! Thinks he's a bloody prince!"

"I don't think so," Lily said quietly. "I talked with him the other day, after that fight you had down by the lake," she shot both James and Sirius death glares. "He didn't seem arrogant and he didn't even care that I was a Muggleborn."

"You don't know my brother, Evans. He's just like the rest of my family. A pureblood supremacist. He's my mother's darling."

But Lily shook her head firmly. "No, Black. I think _you_ don't know him. But maybe you ought to."

Sirius scowled angrily at the other Gryffindors. "What is this-a damn conspiracy?" He threw up his hands. "Fine! I'll go talk to the damn brat. Happy now?"

"And apologize," Lily reminded sternly.

"Bloody hell! Who do you think you are, my mother?"

"You're lucky I'm not, Sirius Black. Otherwise your head would be ringing from now till next Christmas, because I'd bash you with a frying pan till you saw sense."

Sirius gaped at her. "You have some serious issues, Evans. I don't know why in hell the Hat put you in Gryffindor, when all you do is sympathize with the snakes. First Snivellus, now my brother. Are you sure you aren't secretly a Slytherin?"

"Just because I'm a Gryffindor, Black, doesn't mean I can't be friends with people in other Houses, even if they _are_ Slytherins. We're not all of a piece, and Dumbledore always says we should always try to get along with each other. Maybe if you tried that sometime, you might realize you're wrong about them."

"Like I care."

"You're impossible, Black!"

"I try," he grinned. Lily was not amused. Something about that emerald gaze disturbed him, and he found himself feeling guilty, much to his horror. He rose to his feet. "All right, Evans. I'll tell my baby brother I'm sorry." He started out the portrait hole, grumbling. "Merlin's shorts, I don't believe I'm doing this."

Five minutes later, Sirius returned, in a worse temper than he had been in before. "Do you know what the little-" he used a word that would have gotten him a session with a bar of soap had his mother been there to hear it. "-did to me? I go over there and tell Avery I need to speak to my brother and they won't even let me in the common room. So I'm out there in the hallway like a servant, waiting for bloody Prince Black to come see me, and you know what he tells Avery? That if I want to talk to him, I can send an _owl_! A bloody damn _owl_!"

Remus snickered. "He's a Black, all right. Only a Black would have the balls to do that."

"He's got some nerve-the little bastard!"

"Hey, Padfoot, that actually wasn't such a bad thing, when you think about it." James remarked thoughtfully.

"What? How can you say that, James?"

"Well, maybe he figured he wouldn't be able to talk to you without going off on you again, Siri. Merlin knows, I'd be pretty pissed at you, and probably punch you out. So maybe Reg figured it'd be easier if you just wrote him a note."

The others nodded in agreement.

Grudgingly, Sirius admitted that maybe his best friend was right.

"So . . .write him a letter, Padfoot." James urged. "It should be easier to say you're sorry on parchment than to his face, right?"

"I guess so," sighed Sirius. "Cheeky damn brat! I ought to kick his arse." Then he dug out a spare piece of parchment. "Who's got a quill?"

Lily pulled one from behind her ear. "Here. But I want it back."

"Fine, Evans. Now quiet, I need to concentrate," Sirius ordered, and began to write.

Some ten minutes later he was finished, and had sent the letter off with his owl, Strongheart.

"There! Now that's over, let's go down to breakfast, before everything's gone," declared the eldest Black son, and he slung his bag over his shoulder and stalked out of the common room, followed quickly by James, Remus, and Peter.

"Black! My quill, please!" Lily called.

Sirius halted and tossed her the green quill. "Here, Evans. What's so special about it?"

She didn't answer, instead walking past them. She knew they would only sneer at her if she told them it had been a gift to her from Severus for her birthday. But she cherished the green dyed ostrich quill, knowing that Severus had used what little money he made working odd jobs over the summer to buy it for her, along with a pretty green leaf embossed leather journal. _"They reminded me of your eyes,"_ he had written inside the flyleaf of the journal. _"Pure and wise and seeing what no others see. Hope you have a wonderful birthday. Always, Sev."_

No, they would never understand why she called Severus Snape her best friend and her heart's desire. They were too immature to see the truth . . .that behind his sarcastic exterior was a good heart, one that had been hurt badly, but still had the courage to love. She would be damned if she would betray that fragile trust for the sake of a House rivalry that should have died decades ago. _I'll prove them all wrong, everyone who says this will never last, that no Gryffindor can love a Slytherin._

Lily walked into the hall and over to where Alice and Cindy waited at the Gryffindor table. She greeted her friends cheerfully, then glanced quickly over at the Slytheirn table, but to her dismay saw that neither Severus or Regulus were there. Hiding her disappointment behind a cup of pumpkin juice, she sat down beside Alice and began to discuss their upcoming OWL.

The owl found Regulus just as he was exiting the portrait hole. It flew down and delivered a square of parchment and Severus gave an amused smirk. "Looks like your brother took your advice, Reg."

Regulus stared at the piece of parchment glumly, then opened it. He read it through once before stuffing it in his pocket.

Severus looked at him questioningly.

"He says he's sorry for almost knocking me down the stairs and saying he wished I was dead. Says he let his temper do his thinking for him and he shouldn't have."

"And? Are you going to forgive him?"

Regulus heaved a long sigh. "I . . .yes. He might be a huge pain in the arse but, well, he _is_ my brother. And Mother doesn't like it when we quarrel with each other." Then he added, with a sly look, "But I still prefer you as my brother, Sev."

"Naturally," said Severus, and they both laughed.

Then they hurried to their separate classes, Reg had Charms and Severus had his Transfiguration OWL in the Muggle Studies classroom, proctored by Professor Slughorn, since the teachers of each subject weren't allowed to proctor their own OWL.

Severus slid into his seat, he was early, and took out his notes and began to study. By the time his classmates had arrived, he was much more relaxed and composed, and he tucked away his notes and winked at Lily before Slughorn called the class to order, ignoring the parchment ball Potter threw at the back of his head.

"Oy, Snape!" called Sirius.

Severus turned around.

"Did my brother get the letter or what?"

"Yes."

"And? What did he say?"

"You'll have to ask him, Black." Severus replied, then turned around to grab his exam paper, which Slughorn was floating onto each desk.

Sirius muttered something that sounded like, "Stuck-up little git," then began writing his name on his paper.

Severus hid a grin, though he wasn't sure if Sirius meant Regulus or himself with that comment.

Then he had no more time to concern himself with the Black family drama, he had more important things to worry about, like getting an Outstanding on his last OWL.

_One week later:_

Shrieks of joy mingled with dismay throughout Hogwarts as the students got their exam results just before the end of term. Lily sat biting her nails in a torrent of nervousness. She was almost certain she had done well, she had spent every possible second after school studying, either with Severus or Alice and Cindy. Now she simply had to wait for her scores. Normally, OWL scores were not released until after the fifth years had gone home for the summer holidays, but this year, the Committee of Examiners had gotten a head start on their grading and were sending them out early. So Lily would get her OWL results at the same time the other years received their end of term grades.

All the students were in the Great Hall, eating breakfast. Lily was playing with her bacon and fried egg sandwich, too nervous to eat. A parliament of owls descended upon the hall, each with a letter clutched in talons or beak. Finally one circled gracefully and delivered a creamy envelope to her.

Fingers trembling, she broke the Ministry seal on it, then glanced over at the Slytherin table. Severus and Regulus were sitting on the end nearest the Gryffindor table across the aisle. Reg was smiling and looking at his end of term report with pride, so Lily knew he'd aced his classes. Good for him!

Severus glanced up, sensing a pair of eyes upon him, and their eyes met. He held upon his own envelope, as yet unopened, then lifted his goblet of pumpkin juice in a salute and raised an eyebrow at his girlfriend. _Well, here goes nothing, Lily,_ his expression said, then he set the goblet down and opened the envelope.

Lily saluted him back, then turned and unfolded her own piece of parchment.

She heaved a huge sigh of relief.

**OWL RESULTS FOR LILY A. EVANS**

**Charms-O**

**Potions-O**

**Defense Against the Dark Arts-O**

**History of Magic-O**

**Transfiguration-O**

**Herbology-O**

**Astronomy-O**

**Divination-O**

**Care of Magical Creatures-O**

She cast a searching glance over at Severus, who looked up, his eyebrow quirked. She gave him a huge grin and made an O with her thumb and forefinger.

He gave her a thumbs up and grinned back.

She jerked her head at him.

He smiled and gave her the same sign back.

She gave him a return thumbs up sign and applauded. _Good for you, Sev! I was worried you'd let Potter's bullying get to you but you managed to not let him and his idiot friends break your concentration._

She turned back to Alice who was asking her what her scores were. "I got all O's. How about you?"

"All O's except two E's, one in Astronomy and the other in History of Magic," her friend admitted. "I always doze off in those two classes, can't help it."

"I just read the text, and don't pay attention to Binns and Professor Galileo."

"Smart, Lily," Cindy said. "Wish I'd have thought of that."

"Actually, I didn't. Severus did. I just followed his advice," Lily admitted, tossing her hair over her shoulders. "How did you do, Graves? You ace Ancient Runes?"

Cindy nodded happily. "I got all O's except for History of Magic. Got an A. But I'm so happy. I passed! We all did!" She squealed in delight. "My parents are going to be jumping over the moon. We ought to have a picnic down by the lake, to celebrate. You could invite Frank, Alice. And I could invite Reg, and you could invite Severus, Lily. What do you say?"

"It's a wonderful idea. I'll send a note to Sev and Reg after class."

"And I'll ask the house elves to pack us a lunch," Alice said. She leaned over and called, "Frank, picnic down by the lake after class?"

The tall golden-haired boy turned and gave Alice a happy grin. "Sure thing, babe. Meet you right after Herbology." He blew her a kiss, and the rest of the table sniggered.

Sirius poked James and whispered, "Bet you five Galleons there'll be more than just a picnic going on, eh, Prongs. He's got a thing for Stewart. I think he's going to propose one of these days."

"Yeah, I'd say so," James agreed, studying his own results. "How many O's did you get, Padfoot?"

"You first."

"All right. I got O's in . . .Transfiguration, big surprise there, since I'm king of it, and Astronomy , Defense-told you I would-Herbology, History of Magic, Charms, Divination-that's a joke, Care of Magical Creatures-who wouldn't-and the only thing I got an E in is bloody Potions."

Sirius whooped. "Good going, mate. Uh, I got five O's, and three E's and one A, in Potions. I really hate that class. Maybe I should have tried copying off Snivellus's paper, because I'll bet my mother's pearl necklace that he got an O."

"Well, of course he did, Sirius, he practically lives in the lab," chuckled Remus. He had also done well, getting five O's and four E's. He slanted a curious eye towards the last Marauder. "Wormtail? You're awful quiet over there. What did you get?"

Peter looked up, his face pale and hissed. "Don't ask, Moony. I don't want to discuss it."

"Aw, come on, Petey," urged Sirius. "How bad can it be? Old Slughorn give you a D in potions because you blew up your cauldron?"

Peter glared at his friend, his nose twitching. "It's not funny, Sirius. I got mostly E's and A's, but . . ."

"But what?" James asked. "Fess up, Wormtail. You can tell us, we're your mates."

"I . . .I . . .here." He shoved his parchment over to James.

James took it and his eyebrows rose. "Hell, Wormtail. I didn't know you could get one of those!"

"One of what? Let me see," cried Sirius, peering over the Chaser's shoulder.

On the parchment next to the grade for Defense Against the Dark Arts were the words- **Invalid Result-Student Cheated-Attempted Copying of Testmate's Exam**

Remus gave Peter a disgusted glance. "Blazes, Pettigrew, what were you thinking? How could you try and cheat on these tests?"

"I couldn't help it, Lupin! I get too nervous, and Snivellus was right there, scribbling an entire textbook's worth of answers, the bloody encyclopedia." Peter whined. "It's no fair, why can't I have a memory like that?"

"You could, if you attempted to study," Remus shook his head. "Instead of relying on the rest of us to spoonfeed you the answers."

"Aw, lay off him, Moony," Sirius ordered. "So what? It's not the end of the world if he screwed up."

Moony snorted. "That's not what you'd be saying, Sirius Orion Black, if _you_ brought home that mark. Your mother would lock you in your room for the summer."

Sirius shrugged. "Oy, well, Wormtail doesn't have to worry about that. Do you?"

"No. They'll be disappointed, but I think my dad was almost expecting me to fail something. They're not strict and nasty like your mum, Padfoot."

Sirius frowned. "Hey, Wormtail, watch it. My mother's not nasty, just a strict old bitch. But she can't complain about my marks this term, thank Merlin! And at least she won't be able to use my baby brother as an example of the perfect Black scholar any more."

"Good for you, Siri." James clapped him on the back. "How about a game of Quidditch after class today? We've got shortened periods anyhow."

"Sounds good to me," agreed Padfoot, then he turned back to his unfinished plate of eggs, ham, and crispy potatoes.

Severus and Reg agreed to Lily's invitation, they were glad for a chance to spend some time with the girls, although Regulus said uneasily, "I hope Siri and James don't show up and ruin everything."

"They do and I'll hex them into the next century," Severus growled, praying that the Marauders disappeared for the afternoon for once.

"How's this Longbottom chap?"

"He's all right, for a Gryffindor. Minds his own business," answered Severus. "Stewart's been going with him since fourth year, I think it's a given they'll be together after they finish school."

"Like you and Lily, eh?" Regulus said, winking suggestively.

"Yes, like that." Severus admitted quietly. "If all goes well." He straightened his robe then beckoned Regulus to hurry. "Hurry, Black. Before we're late."

"Keep your pants on, Snape. I need to fix my hair."

Severus heaved an impatient sigh. "It's fine, Reg."

Regulus combed it down and ran a hand through it. "Perfect. Okay, let's move."

The picnic went off without a hitch, for which Severus was extremely grateful. Frank was cordial to the two Slytherins, asking Snape how he had done on his OWLs and engaging Regulus in a Quidditch discussion, since the Slytherin played Seeker for his House team.

They ate cold fried chicken and ham, potato salad and coleslaw, crisps, watermelon, pickles, and small cakes, washed down with icy lemonade, pumpkin juice, and butterbeer.

"An excellent lunch," Frank said, finishing off his butterbeer. Then he eyes Alice appraisingly. "Want to take a walk, sweetheart?"

"Where, Frank?" Alice laughed.

"Around the lake a ways."

They went off together, holding hands and whispering.

Regulus was telling Cindy amusing stories about his cousins and his childhood, his head in her lap, while she fed him bits of cake, and laughed down at him.

That left Lily free to talk to Severus about their upcoming summer together.

"I think we should tell our parents at the first opportunity, Sev," she said decisively. "That way it'll be out in the open and we won't have to feel awkward or anything."

"If you want," he said, not sounding very enthusiastic. His hand crept up her back and toyed with her silken hair, twirling it around one long finger playfully.

"Don't be nervous, Sev," she soothed, lifting her hand and stroking his equally silky hair away from his eyes. "It'll all work out."

"You sound awfully certain. You See anything?"

"No. Well . . .apart from the one vision I had of kissing beside the treehouse. But you know sometimes I know things. And I feel that we're going to be fine, Severus. You and I . . .we were meant to be."

"So speaks the wise oracle," he teased lightly.

She swatted him playfully on the back of the head. "Be nice, Snape!"

"I'm always nice . . .with you." He smirked, capturing her hand and kissing her palm. "Tell me my future, Lily. Tell me I'm going to end up married to you forever and everything we've ever dreamed of will come true."

"It will, Sev. Because together we can do anything." Then she leaned over and kissed him.

He shifted his hold, deepening the kiss, she was like honey, he couldn't get enough of her. "Little oracle, I will love you always," he murmured into her ear, while his hands glided up her back and he pulled her close, trailing kisses down her neck until she gasped in sheer delight.

"Severus _Snape_!"

"What?" he lifted his head, his dark eyes twinkling.

"Where did you learn this?"

"Instinct," he purred, and chuckled. "And a book I borrowed from Reg. Why? Don't you like it?"

"Yes. Can't you tell?" she asked, nestling closer to him. "But we _are_ in public, my dear king snake, so . . ." She sat up, regretfully.

"Spoilsport," he grumbled, looking irritated.

"Come here," she laughed, tugging on his lean muscled shoulder, pulling his head down until it was lying in her lap. "There. Now I can play with your hair and feed you chocolate."

"I'd rather kiss you."

"Hush." She withdrew a bar of Honeydukes best from a pocket of her robes and broke off a square and fed it to him.

"Mmm." He smirked, then sucked on her finger.

"Severus!"

"What?" he inquired innocently.

"Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

She fed him another square, blushing. "That!" She giggled when he seized her hand and began to kiss her fingers lightly. "Behave, Snape!" she scolded, laughing, and tapped him on the nose in mock reproof.

"I am. That's nothing compared to what I want to do," he said wickedly, then he summoned a piece of watermelon and began to feed her as well.

Only he forgot that watermelon was juicy, and Lily was laughing, and ended up getting juice all over his face as well as her robe.

"Good one, Evans!" he mock scowled, pretending annoyance. "Now look what you did."

"Want me to kiss it and make it better?" she asked coyly.

"Please." He tilted his face up and she promptly kissed him. "Mmm, I love watermelon and chocolate."

Severus groaned in pleasure. This was heaven and he wished it never had to end. He could lie like this forever, in the sun and let Lily kiss him, while an aching sweetness swept through him from head to foot, setting him ablaze.

"All better, Sev?" she purred, her hair tickling his cheek as she leaned over him.

"I'm cured," he chuckled. "If a bit . . .sticky."

For some reason that comment sent her into gales of laughter. She quickly conjured a wet cloth to wipe his face, laughing uncontrollably.

"What are you two doing over there?" Cindy asked sleepily, she had been half-asleep on Reg's shoulder.

"Nothing!" they chorused.

"Sure you are. That's what my grandfather told my grandmother before their wedding night. And along came my dad nine months later."

Regulus burst out laughing.

" _Cindy_!" Lily yelled, then she threw the wet cloth at her friend.

"You're a fine one to talk, Graves," teased Snape, sitting up. "Corrupting innocent little serpents." He waved a hand at Regulus.

Reg blushed. "Aww, stuff it, Snape. I'm not a little kid. I know where everything goes." Then he realized what he'd said and went even redder. "Uh . . .I mean . . ."

"Thrilled to hear that, Reg," drawled Severus, while the girls laughed hysterically. "Guess your brother was good for something."

Regulus laughed. "Got that right, Snape!" Then he turned and kissed Cindy leisurely. "'Sides, I like older women."

"Glad to hear that, star boy," said Cindy, and they all laughed.

They were so intent upon each other that none of them noticed the silent observer above them, watching them with barely disguised jealous hunger in his hazel eyes. _Damn you, Snivellus Snape! That should have been me!_ James thought angrily. He hovered a scant fifteen feet above the group, his hands gripping his broom so tightly his knuckles were white.

He thought about going down and ripping Snape away from Lily and tossing the Slytherin in the lake, then rejected that idea. He already had too many detentions this year and couldn't afford another one, or else he'd be put on probation. But seeing Snape and Lily together left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He watched until he heard Sirius calling for him to finish the game, then he spun about and headed back towards the pitch, the Quaffle under his arm. _He's all wrong for you, Lily. Someday, you'll see that. And when you do, I'll be waiting._

**_So, what did you think of that part? Did you enjoy Reg's discussion with Sev? And the picnic?_ **

**_Next: Severus and Lily return home, and Severus must face Mr. Evans . . .as well as his own father and mother. This is where things get angsty._ **

**_Please review and let me know what you think! Just click the button at the end._ **


	7. So  . . .You Want To Date My Daughter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SEverus' homecoming is marred by Tobias, then he still must face Mr. Evans and ask if he can date Lily. What will happen?

_13 Spinner's End, 1976_

_Snape residence:_

Severus let himself into the rundown pile of bricks that had been his home for fifteen years, digging the key out of the pocket of his book bag and unlocking the door with a sense of foreboding in the pit of his stomach. But that was nothing new. He had always hated homecomings. Hogwarts was his sanctuary, the one place, save for perhaps the Evans' backyard, that he could be his true self. Here, at Spinner's End, he was nothing more than a freak. At least according to his father. Who did not appear to be home at the moment, thank God for small favors.

Severus eased open the door and slipped through, dragging his trunk after him. Once inside the dingy front hall, he performed a bit of wandless magic to send his trunk up the stairs to his room. He looked around, the wallpaper was still a faded Bristol blue color, and there were still scuff marks on the wooden floor from where Tobias dragged his boots after coming home drunk countless times.

 _Still the same. Home sweet home, Sev,_ he thought sarcastically. He was about to go into the kitchen and say hello to his mother, he was nearly certain she was home by now, it had taken the Evanses nearly two hours to get from King's Cross to High Bentham, and now it was after four. Eileen usually got off from her work at the apothecary in Diagon Alley by four. He hesitated just before the kitchen, recalling that he wanted to show Eileen his OWL's, but they were in his trunk upstairs.

He quickly and quietly climbed the worn stairs, remembering to avoid the fourth step from the top, it squeaked horribly, the wood was warped.

His room was the third from the left, next to the bathroom. He shoved open the door with a shoulder.

That too was still the same, small and gray with a narrow bed with a plain blue blanket upon it, gotten from a surplus store, a thin pillow, and a worn chest of drawers. His desk and his bookshelf were against the wall closest to the window, empty until he unpacked his books. The single good thing about this room was that it offered a view of the river, and sometimes watching the flowing water soothed Severus when he was upset.

He flicked on the light, and the bare bulb in the ceiling came on. His trunk was at the foot of the bed, and he quickly opened it and located his OWL paper, it was right on the top. The only thing he would need out of the trunk were his books, and a few sheets of parchment and a quill and ink, to do his summer assignments. Otherwise, everything else could remain in it, since he only wore Muggle clothing at home.

Speaking of which, he quickly removed his robes and stuffed them in his trunk and then opened his dresser and pulled out a pair of worn jeans and a rather small T-shirt. He frowned, for the clothes had fit him last summer, but now he had grown a whole inch, and they were too short.

Luckily, he knew a wandless charm to adjust clothing, and he muttered it. Then he changed, sighing. He would need to go get new clothes someday, when he had enough money, that is. Which meant looking for a new job, hopefully he could find one that paid enough to keep him in clothes and books for the summer. Anything to keep him away from the house while Tobias was in it.

He quickly tied the laces on his trainers, at least they were still in semi-good condition, he had bought them new last summer and hadn't outgrown them yet. Then he snatched up his OWL report and went downstairs.

As predicted, Eileen was in the kitchen, preparing supper. "Hello, Mum. I'm home," he announced softly.

His mother looked up from the potatoes she was scrubbing in the sink and her dark eyes lit up. "Severus! I didn't hear you come in." She came and hugged him, smiling up at him. "You're taller than me now, son."

"I grew an inch," he told her, hugging her back. She looked even more tired and worn than usual, there were new lines on her face, he observed sadly, making her look older than her thirty-five years.

"Good, at least you get to eat decent at school," Eileen said, brushing her black hair away from her forehead. She was a medium woman, thin and angular, with a pointed face, but once she had been pretty, before she had entered a life of drudgery and hardship with Tobias Snape. Severus had inherited her coloring and her magic, for which he was profoundly grateful. She was dressed in a lilac dress with a white collar embroidered with a pansy. Severus recognized it as her own handiwork, though she was a witch and a pureblood, living with Tobias had made her into a Muggle as well, and she had learned to sew with the best of them.

She had taken to making her own clothes when he was nine, it was cheaper that way, and also her son's, until he began to buy his own when he was thirteen with money he saved from his odd jobs.

"How are you, Mum?"

"Fine, Sev."

He studied her closely, but could detect nothing wrong with her physically, this time. "He hasn't been hitting you again, has he?"

"Severus! What sort of question is that?"

"One I need to know the answer to."

Eileen shook her head. "No. Your father has recently gotten a part time job down at the hardware store."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And how much of his paycheck has he drunk up so far?"

"Severus!"

"What? You and I both know that's what always happens, sooner or later. He never changes, Mum, no matter how many times he says he will. I know you keep hoping . . ."

"Sev, don't start. Please. You've just come home."

"All right. Sorry," he apologized, for he hated making Eileen upset. Tobias did enough of that, he certainly didn't need to add to it. "Here. I received my OWL scores early."

She took the paper he held out and read it. Then she smiled at him. "All O's! I'm very proud of you, Sev! That means you can get into any NEWT level class you want next year." She hugged him again. "Have you decided what you want to take?"

"No. Except potions, of course."

She chuckled at that. "Of course. You wouldn't be my son else." She eyed him knowingly. "Anything else you'd like to share with me?"

Severus found himself blushing crimson. As he had said to Lily, he could never hide anything from Eileen. She was far too perceptive. "Uh . . .yes. Lily and I, well, we . . .uh . . .started going out."

"You have? That's great, Sev. When did you two start dating?"

"Uh . . . a few weeks ago." He moved over to sit down at the table.

Eileen lifted a tea kettle off the stove and poured them cups of tea in two chipped cups. "Here. Have a cuppa and tell me all about you and little Lily Evans."

"She's not all that little anymore, Mum. You haven't seen her lately, have you? You'll be surprised when you do. She's beautiful. Her hair, it's like the dark embers of a fire, and her eyes . . .I could stare at them all day . . ."

"They're green, right?"

Severus nodded. "Evergreen. She wants me to speak to her dad, Mum. To, uh, ask his permission to date her." He looked down at his hands. "So . . .I need to get another job. That way he won't think I'm a deadbeat, like _him_. I need money anyhow, for clothes and other things."

"I have a bit put away, Sev," Eileen began.

Severus shook his head. "No. That's all right, Mum. You keep it, I can earn my own. I'll go into town and see if anyone's hiring, they ought to be, since it's summer."

"If you're sure, son."

"I am," he said firmly.

She smiled sadly. "Oh, Sev. I wish I could do more for you."

He placed a gentle hand over hers. "You do enough."

She picked up her cup of tea and sipped it. "I'm so glad it's Lily. She's a decent girl, Sev. Smart and strong in magic. Make sure you appreciate her."

"I will, Mum. She's brilliant, you know. We're in the same period in potions, and we usually work on labs together. We can brew anything together. And not only that, she doesn't care that we're in rival Houses, she says it doesn't matter a Knut to her that I'm a Slytherin and she's a Gryffindor. She's wonderful, and sometimes I still can't believe she wants to go out with me, when there are a dozen more popular and better looking boys in her own House she could date. . ." he trailed off, feeling suddenly awkward about revealing his feelings this way, even if it was to his mother.

"And why wouldn't she? You're polite and well-spoken, son, and know how to treat a lady. At least I hope you do, Severus Snape."

"Yes, Mum. I know how. You taught me, after all," he reminded. "Lily says she'll let me know when I can go over and talk to her father." He fought the urge to run his fingers through his hair or pace or bite his nails.

Eileen patted his cheek lightly. "Well, I wouldn't worry about that, dear. I'm sure once you speak with Henry Evans, he'll understand you have only the best intentions-"

"What's he done now?" interrupted a deep voice, slightly slurred.

Severus cursed himself for not keeping an eye out for Tobias, who it seemed had just arrived home, though from the sound of it, had decided to stop off at the Bull and have one for the road, Severus thought with a sneer. As usual. He turned to face his father, who for once looked normal, in a collared shirt and gray trousers, shaved and his blond hair neatly barbered, but his dark blue eyes were faintly bloodshot.

Eileen immediately stood up. "Hello, Toby. I didn't hear you come in. Severus and I were just having a cup of tea before I finished dinner."

Tobias ignored Eileen's attempt to distract him and repeated, in a soft irritated tone, "Answer my question, woman. What's he done now that he has to talk to somebody's father?"

"Nothing, sir." Severus said stiffly, rising to stand protectively in front of his mother.

"Don't give me that, boy! You're always up to no good."

Tobias stalked over to glare down at him, then blinked when he realized his son was nearly as tall as he was now.

Severus held his ground, though he longed to flinch and step back. "I haven't done anything, sir," he repeated.

"Except be born a useless freak," said Tobias cruelly.

 _Oh, and like you're any better?_ Severus longed to say, but didn't dare. Giving lip to Tobias would only result in a beating.

"Stop it, Toby!" Eileen said, though there wasn't much force behind the words. "Must you argue all the time? Severus hasn't done anything wrong. He's going out with Lily Evans, you remember Lily, don't you?"

"The redhead next door?" Severus nodded curtly. "Humph! She's a looker. Got a nice rack on her," he leered at his son.

Severus clenched his teeth, furious.

"About time you got your nose outta those books, boy, and figured out what girls were for. Thought for awhile I'd have to draw you a diagram." The big man chuckled at his own wit.

Severus flushed hotly and clenched his fists, fighting to control his temper. He began counting to ten silently.

"Surprised one of Evans' girls would give you the time of day, think who the hell they are half the time." Tobias's eyes narrowed. "Unless . . .you didn't get her knocked up, did you?"

"No! It isn't like that!" Severus exploded.

"Mind your tone when you talk to me," growled the older Snape. "You might put on airs at that fancy magic school, boy, but here you remember who's boss, Severus Snape!" He jabbed a finger into Severus's chest.

"Like I could forget," Severus muttered, backing away. Then he whirled and headed towards the stairs, the old feelings of worthlessness rising within him mingled with anger.

"Where do you think you're going, mister? Come back here, I ain't finished yet!" Tobias bellowed.

Severus ignored him, continuing on up the stairs. He had to get away, before he hexed the bastard.

"Don't you walk away from me, boy!"

"Go to hell!" he yelled back, his temper sizzling. How dare the old bastard profane what he shared with Lily that way, by implying the only way he could ever get a girl was by making her pregnant? He slammed the door to his room so hard some of the plaster cracked.

He sat on his bed, trembling with the force of his anger, feeling his magic surge wildly in response. He forced himself to breathe, in and out, struggling to bring his magic to heel, for uncontrolled it was a danger to everyone.

Below in the kitchen, he could hear Tobias and Eileen arguing.

"Tobias, please! He didn't mean it, you upset him with your comments, it's his first girlfriend, and he's touchy . . ."

"Touchy, is he? The sodding little bastard told me to go to hell! If you think I'm going to take that from him, Eileen, think again. He'll speak respectfully to me or else I'll knock some respect into him, Goddammit!" Tobias raged. "Every time he comes back from that freak school he's got an attitude and I'm not putting up with it! Now get out of my way!"

"No, you're not going up there like this," Eileen said, for once standing her ground. "Toby, you promised you would try and get along this summer . . .please, sit down. Have some tea, it'll soothe your nerves."

"I don't need any of your damn magic tea, Eileen. I need to go and teach your son the meaning of respect."

"He's _your_ son too, Tobias Snape!" Eileen reminded him.

"Not when he acts like that, he's not! Who the bloody hell does he think he is? Kid forgets who provided him with a roof over his head and food all these years. Now he thinks just 'cause he's got some twit girlfriend he's Mr. Bigshot. Well, I have news for him, so long as he lives here, he'll obey my rules, or else I'll kick his arse out!"

"Toby, if you'd just try talking for once instead of sneering or shouting at him . . ."

"Don't tell me how to talk to the damn kid, Eileen! He's a disrespectful snot, like half the bloody teenagers today. The only thing they understand is a good smack."

"No, Toby. Please, just leave him alone, he's just gotten home . . .he got very good marks in school, aced his OWL's . . .He was so happy, Toby, please . . .I was making him a special dinner . . ."

"And then he had to go ruin everything with his smart mouth! Like always! Smartarse bookworm! If he paid as much attention to his mouth as he does to all his bloody books and potions, maybe he'd amount to something someday . . ."

"He _will_ amount to something someday, he has the potential to be a great wizard and a Potions Master, Toby."

"I mean amount to something in the _real_ world, Eileen, not in your sodding fantasy realm." Tobias sneered. "You coddle the boy, always have, that's why he isn't worth spit. Now quit making excuses for him, Eileen. Boy needs discipline, he always has."

There came the scrape of a chair across the linoleum.

Then the sound of heavy boots coming up the stairs.

By then Severus had managed to lock away his magic so he needn't fear killing his sorry excuse for a father or blowing up his entire house. He had caught bits and pieces of the argument while trying to wrestle his magic back into submission, and he cursed his quick tongue, for now he had started something he couldn't dare finish. _Idiot! You just had to mouth off to him! Brilliant, just bloody brilliant! Now you're in for it, all right._

He flinched and cringed as he heard his father coming up the stairs.

Tobias's hand thudded on the door. "Severus! Open the bloody door, _now_!"

He squeezed his eyes shut, suppressing the instinctive tremors and the dread curling like an Acid Pop in his stomach.

"Severus! Don't you understand English? Get your arse over here and open the bloody door!"

Severus forced himself to go across the room and open the door, though he longed to crawl beneath the bed. But he was no coward, like Pettigrew, and besides hiding had never done any good with Tobias.

He pulled open the door and came face to face with his drunken furious parent. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

He felt Tobias grab the collar of his shirt and lift him off the ground. "Listen, you little snot, if you ever talk back to me that way again, I'll strip the hide off of you. Clear?"

Severus nodded. "Yes, sir. I' m . . .I'm sorry."

His father's hand lifted and struck him hard across the face.

Severus's head snapped back and he bit his lip hard to keep from crying out.

"Maybe that will teach you to remember, huh, just who you're talking to, boy?"

Severus didn't answer, he directed his gaze down to the floor, and prayed that would be all.

His chin was jerked up abruptly.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, boy."

Obsidian eyes met indigo, and in both was an undisguised loathing.

"Answer me, boy! Will that teach you to mind that damn mouth, or do you need a licking too?"

Severus shook his head frantically, and managed to say through his already swelling lip, "No, sir. I'll remember, sir. Sorry, sir." He hated the way he was whining, but he knew better than to have any kind of defiance in his tone when Tobias was like this. _Coward, Snivellus!_

Tobias cracked him one across the opposite cheek. "You bloody well ought to be. Get your skinny arse downstairs and help your mother with dinner, before I change my mind and wallop you anyway, you smartarsed worthless brat!"

He set his son on his feet and pushed him roughly towards the stairs.

Severus hurried down the stairs, one hand pressed to his throbbing cheek. Ironic, how the more things changed, the more they stayed the same, he thought bitterly.

He entered the kitchen and wordlessly began to set the table.

Eileen touched him lightly on the shoulder. "Oh, Sev."

He jerked away from her. "Don't. I'm fine."

The witch turned away to hide her tears, returning to the sink to finish peeling the potatoes.

Severus went to gather the flatware from the drawer and when he looked up, found his mother pressing a wet cloth to his face.

"You shouldn't antagonize him, son," she whispered.

Severus said nothing, simply turned around to finish his task, but resentment bubbled within him, sharp and hard. _That's right, Mum, it's all my fault. Like always. All my fault, never his._ He lowered his head to hide the sudden bitter tears, and continued setting the table, pretending not to hear the quiet sobs mingled with running water from behind him. _Welcome home, Severus. So much for a great start to the summer._

_15 Spinner's End_

_Evans residence:_

"Tuney, where did you put my _Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific_? Don't tell me you used all of my favorite shampoo?" Lily yelled while hunting frantically through the cabinet beneath the sink in the bathroom.

"Hey, it's not just _yours_ , Lily. I live here too," Petunia reminded her little sister. "Why don't you just magic some up if we're all out?"

Lily opened the door and stuck her head out, Petunia's room was just across the hall, and her big sister was sitting beside her vanity table, painting Luscious Lavender polish on her toes."Tuney, you know it doesn't work that way. And I'm not allowed to use magic outside of school anyhow."

"Oh, right. That restriction or whatever. Why don't you check Mum's bathroom, she might have some. Or just use the other one we have."

"I like mine better," her sister huffed. "It makes my hair all soft and shiny and it smells-"

"Terrific, I know!" Petunia finished, pretending to groan at the old line. Then she laughed. "You're in awfully good mood today. Glad to be home for the summer? Thought you loved it at that school."

"I do, but I also missed being home." Lily admitted, then went down the hall to her parents' bedroom.

She returned a moment later with a pink bottle and grinned happily. "Great! Now I can finish my shower. See you in a bit, Tuney!" She retreated into the bathroom, humming to herself.

"Is it me, or did she just start humming _Unforgettable_?" Petunia wondered to herself. "Looks like my little sister has a romance brewing with someone. I wonder who it is?"

She resumed putting the polish on, determined to grill her sister when she finished primping.

Some twenty minutes later, Lily emerged from the bathroom, her fiery hair falling in gentle waves to her shoulders, wearing a simple emerald green tunic dress and beaded green belt and matching sandals. "Well, how do I look?" she came into Petunia's room and twirled about once.

Petunia gave her the once over and nodded in approval. "Very nice, Lil. Why are you all giddy?"

"No reason."

Petunia arched an eyebrow. "Now, now. Never lie to your older sister, Lily Anne. Tell the truth. You're all bubbly over a guy. Right?"

"Maybe," Lily tried to be evasive. "Your hair looks nice, Tuney. Did you get it cut?"

"Yes, this is how some of the girls are wearing it." Petunia said, fluffing her fingers through her short hair, styled with a bit of a wave. "Now don't change the subject. You've finally fallen in love, haven't you?" She jerked her thumb back at her tie-dye pink and purple covered bed.

Lily went and sat down, smothering the urge to start giggling like a bubblehead. "First you. Did Dursley the Dirigible propose yet?"

"Lily! Don't call him that!"

"Why? He is . . .kind of overweight, Tuney," Lily pointed out mischievous.

"He's not. He's just large-boned."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Sure. If you want to call it that. Well . . .has he?"

"No . . .but I have a feeling he will soon. I think he's waiting for that promotion his father promised him at Grunnings. The one where he's product manager. If he gets that . . .then he'll be making top wages and he'll probably buy a ring next."

"Why wait, if he loves you?"

"Because . . .money is important, Lil," Petunia said, giving her sister an odd look.

"Well, yes, but isn't more important that he loves you?" She narrowed her eyes at Petunia. "Tuney, he does love you, right?"

"Of course he does. He calls me his little pet, isn't that sweet?" Petunia said, but there was a note of uncertainty in her voice.

"And what about you? Do you love him?"

Petunia hesitated for a fraction of a second before replying. "Yes. He's my one and only."

Lily frowned. "And the only one you've ever dated."

"Humph! You're a fine one to talk. The only boy you ever spend time with is that creepy Snape next door, making potions."

"Sev's not creepy," Lily defended. "All I'm saying, Tuney, is that if you're not sure he loves you, or you love him, then why bother going out?"

"Vern does love me, else why would he go steady with me? I'm eighteen, Lily, old enough to know when a man's serious about having a relationship. But enough about me and Vern. Tell me about you and this mysterious boy. Is he cute? Did you meet at school?" She leaned forward, her blue eyes alight for the latest bit of gossip. "Come on, Lil, you can tell me-we're sisters."

"It's not such a mystery, Tuney. And yes, he's a wizard and I think he's very cute."

"Groovy!" squealed Petunia. "What's his name? Do you have a picture?"

"No, because I don't need one. I'll see him practically every day now that school's out."

"You will? He lives here, in High Bentham? Do I know him?" Petunia was frantically cudgling her brain, trying to come up with a boy Lily's age that lived in their town that was a wizard, but the only one that kept coming up was . . .Snape.

"You do. He's always over here."

Petunia put a hand to her mouth. "Oh. My. God. Tell me it's not-"

"Severus," Lily finished, her eyes gone soft and dreamy.

Petunia nearly collapsed. "Lily, have you gone _insane_? He's . . .Snape . . .his father is the worst drunk and layabout, he can barely hold down a job for six months, and they're on the Needy family list all the time . . .how can you love him?"

"I just do, Tuney. And I don't care about his father, I'm not in love with _him_. And who cares if he's poor?"

Petunia hit herself in the forehead. "Lil, you're not thinking straight. How are you going support yourselves if you ever do marry? Or are you just going to end up barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen? I thought you were smarter than that."

Lily glared at her. "I _am_ smarter than that, Tuney. I intend to get a job after I finish school and so does Severus. I wish you'd stop comparing him to his father, he's nothing like Tobias. He's sweet and he loves me with everything he is."

"Oh, and I suppose he told you that?"

"Yes, he did! He even quoted Shakespeare. He really loves me, Tuney, I know it like I know the sun rises in the east. It's not just a line. And . . .and I love him too!"

Petunia groaned. "Lily, you're fifteen. You're making a mistake. I know you think it's love, but really, how many boys have you dated?"

"For your information, I had scores of boys asking me out at school. But I turned them all down because none of them were the right one."

"And Snape is?"

"Yes. It doesn't matter that I'm only fifteen, Tuney. He's the one. I just know it, in here." She tapped her chest. "And here." She indicated her head.

"Are you sure you're not bespelled?"

Lily laughed. "Yes. I don't need a spell to love Severus. He made my heart stutter the first time he kissed me."

Petunia's jaw fell open. "He _kissed_ you?"

"Yes. And it was . . .oh, Tuney . . .it was incredible. I felt like I was flying . . .only my feet were still on the ground. And the second time we kissed, he was so sweet and awkward . . .but that kiss was just as incredible as the first one. I was almost blown away."

"Are you sure we're talking about the same Snape here? The Severus Snape that dresses in scruffy jeans and holey shirts, his hair hanging in his eyes, that mows our lawn for extra cash?"

"Uh huh. But Tuney, he's ever so much more than just that. That's only one side. The other side . . ." she sighed dreamily.

Petunia looked dazed. "I don't believe it. Severus Snape blows her away . . .I think I'm dreaming."

"No you aren't. Really, it's no stranger than you and Vernon."

"What? Vernon's respectable."

"So is Severus!" Lily snapped. "He'd never hurt me. I think he might even die for me. Would Vernon do that for you?"

"Well, I don't know. I never asked him."

Lily sighed. "Look, let's not fight, okay? Just trust me, Tuney. There's more to Sev than meets the eye. I am so looking forward to this summer."

"Mr. Anthony said you can have your old job back at the theater, Lily," Petunia recalled. Last year Lily had worked at the cinema, selling tickets.

"Good, I was wondering. And on my nights off Sev and I can go to the movies half price. You still working at the pharmacy with Dad?"

Petunia nodded. She had recently graduated secondary school and so was now a full-fledged working girl. "But Vern said that I won't need to work if he gets the position at Grunnings."

"And do you want to stay home, Tuney?"

Petunia shrugged. "Maybe for a little while. But I don't like to be dependant upon a man for everything. So perhaps I'll get a part time job somewhere once Vern and I are married."

"Do Mum and Dad know you're thinking of marriage?"

"Well, I think so, though we haven't really discussed it since I don't have a ring yet. Are you going to tell them about Snape?"

"Yes. I think Mum will be okay with it, you know she's always liked Sev. I don't know about Dad though. I figured he should to talk to Severus, so he could see for himself that Severus was a decent kid, even if his background isn't the greatest."

Petunia snorted. "When are you going to tell him?"

"Soon. Maybe tonight." Lily said, then she bounced to her feet and headed downstairs to help her mother prepare supper, still humming _Unforgettable_ under her breath.

But it was three days later when Severus finally got a letter from Lily's owl, Snowdrop, telling him that her father wished to see him and speak about his intentions towards his youngest daughter.

 _Don't let him intimidate you, Sev. He's not really a grouch and his bark is worse than his bite. He's just a little overprotective._ Lily had written, making Severus chuckle. _Little oracle, he can't be any worse than my own father, and if I can survive Tobias in a temper I can survive Henry Evans._

He was grateful it had taken her so long to approach her father, since that gave him time to heal the bruises Tobias had left on his face with some Rapid Healing salve. He had spent the rest of that time avoiding his father, helping his mother brew some potions for her work, and doing his summer assignments. The only time he saw Tobias was at dinner, and then he was careful to keep his head down and not say much of anything, unless asked a direct question. He had gone shopping and managed to buy three new outfits, using the last of his savings, so at least he would look halfway decent if he needed to apply for a summer job. Or speak with his girlfriend's father.

Luckily that night Tobias was not going to be home, he was at a poker game down at the Black Bull with his drinking buddies, so it was just Eileen and Severus for dinner that night. Eileen had made baked chicken, rice, and carrots, one of their favorite meals-it was cheap, tasty, and filling.

Even so, Severus kept glancing at the clock, unable to eat more than a few mouthfuls. He knew it was ridiculous, being so nervous over meeting Lily's father, it wasn't as if Henry Evans was going to put him through the Inquisition, after all. Yet his stomach was in knots and he hastily drank a glass of water then pushed away his plate and stood up.

"Well, I'd better . . .go on over Lily's."

"Sev, you barely touched your dinner!" Eileen exclaimed.

"Sorry. I'm just not very hungry," he muttered, feeling bad about wasting food. "I'll have something later, when I come home."

He turned away, trying to fix his hair, but it refused to do anything but hang limply in front of his eyes. He swore under his breath, recalling the taunts Potter and Black had thrown at him of greasy long-haired git. That was not the kind of impression he needed to make tonight. Frustrated, he ran his hands through his hair again and supposed it would have to do. Perhaps if he just tied it back?

"Severus, would you like me to trim your hair?"

He turned to face his mother, startled. "I . . .yes, all right. But only a bit."

She chuckled. "Don't worry, son. I'll just trim a bit off the front and the ends, I won't shave you bald. Have a seat."

He followed her back to the kitchen, where she drew her wand and performed a few quick passes over it while chanting a phrase in Latin. "There! Much better! Have a look." She held out a hand mirror for him to see.

His hair now fell in tamed waves to either side of his face, silky and flowing, but not stringy and unkempt. _Merlin, it actually looks good! I should have asked her to trim my hair a long time ago._ "I never knew you could cut hair with a spell, Mum."

"Well, you never asked," she said, faintly chiding. "How do you like it?"

"It's . . .different. But in a good way. Thanks."

"You're welcome. Best you get going, Sev. And remember, you're as good as anyone." She gave him a quick hug before he walked out the door.

He gave her a crooked smile before shutting the door and walking the two houses down to the Evans property. He knew his mother meant well, but after years of living with Tobias, he found it hard to believe her words. His palms were sweating, he wiped them on the back of his jeans, then tried to walk casually down the street.

_Please, Merlin, help me to not make an utter ass out of myself. Let me, for this one night, borrow Potter's suave golden tongue, so I can get through this without looking like a tongue-tied arsehole._

He climbed the steps and stood there on the porch, frozen, for a brief moment. Then he took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and rang the bell.

Petunia answered the door, causing him to wonder if she did nothing but wait beside the door to greet visitors. She blinked upon seeing who was at the door. "Snape? I almost didn't recognize you. You . . .uh . . .cut your hair."

"Petunia. Where is Lily?"

"In the kitchen, washing up the dishes. Come in. My parents are in the den." She stepped back to let him inside, and for once there was no rancor in her tone.

 _Well, that's a change. Tuney actually being civil._ He shrugged, then followed her into the den, though he knew where it was on his own. He wiped his hands once more on his jeans before entering the wood-paneled den.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans were seated on the brown leather sofa, looking expectantly at Petunia. "Here he is, Mum and Dad." Then she withdrew, though Severus wouldn't have put it past her to eavesdrop.

Severus came forward a pace, looking uncertain. Polly smiled at him. "Hello, Severus. Please, sit down." She gestured to a seat on the recliner nearest Henry.

But Severus knew better than to sit down yet. "Hello, Mrs. Evans," he said, and held out his hand to shake.

She took it and shook warmly, then turned to her husband, who was regarding Severus critically. "Henry, you remember Severus Snape, he lives just next door. He mows our lawn."

Severus longed to sink into the floor. He knew Polly meant well, but she made him sound like a hired hand or a servant trying to seduce the lord's daughter like in a Victorian romance. Then he recalled his mother's advice, and stood tall before the Evans patriarch and held out a hand. "Hello, sir. I'm Severus Snape, pleased to meet you."

Henry Evans rose and took the younger man's hand in a firm grip, eying him up and down. The bluff man could find nothing displeasing about the skinny teenager save for a slightly crooked nose, probably been broken a few times, he thought, and the fact that his hair was shoulder length. Normally Henry disliked long hair on a boy, he felt it made them look effeminate, but oddly, Severus's hair didn't bother him all that much, at least it was neat and clean and pulled back. "And you also. Have a seat, young man. We need to discuss a few things."

Severus backed up into the recliner and sat down, feeling his heart rate start to speed up. Merlin, but he felt as if he were before the Headmaster, no, the Minister of Magic, about to get sentenced to Azkaban. Which was what it would be like if he were forbidden to see Lily again. He forced himself to breathe and placed his hands flat on his knees, meeting Henry's piercing gaze with a feigned calmness he never knew he possessed.

Henry brushed a lock of blond hair away from his forehead and studied the boy again before speaking. _Kid's nervous as hell, but he doesn't show it. I like that in a man. Means he's got self-control. And guts too. Too bad he's the son of Tobias Snape._ He cleared his throat. "So . . .you want to date my daughter, Mr. Snape?"

Severus swallowed, moistening his throat before speaking. "Yes, sir. I would like to date Lily, sir, with your permission." He exhaled softly, relieved to have gotten that sentence out without stumbling over any words. _Thank you, Merlin._

"Well, Mr. Snape, I don't allow just anyone to date my daughter," Henry began in a stern tone, frowning hard at the fifteen-year-old.

Severus did not flinch, compared to Tobias's glares, Henry was about as intimidating as Father Christmas. "I understand, sir."

"First, I want to know what you intend to do over the summer holiday? Do you have any plans to find work, or will you stay home and sleep away the day like most teenagers your age?"

"No, sir. I'm looking for work. I haven't found a job right now, but I will soon."

"What can you do, Mr. Snape? Besides cut grass."

"I . . .uh . . .I can take dictation and write neatly, I did that for a summer for Mr. Pallin down at the post office. I can do yard work also. I . . .uh . . ." he floundered, trying to figure out why he was being asked these questions.

"Can you run a cash register, boy? Tally receipts in your head if necessary?"

"Yes . . .although I never have, I can learn."

"Can you remember lists of names, for instance a list of inventory of medicinal drugs?"

"Yes, sir," Severus said, sounding much more confident now. "I help my mother make potions for her work, and I have to be able to memorize long lists of ingredients."

"Oh? And are you a good scholar, Mr. Snape?"

"I'd say so, sir."

"Lily said he got top marks on his OWLS, dear," interrupted Mrs. Evans. "Those are the standardized tests every wizard takes and has to pass in order to continue on at Hogwarts. Like our O Levels, dear. She says he got all Outstandings."

Henry looked impressed in spite of himself. "That true?"

"Yes, sir. "

"Very well. Looks like you're a match for my girl education wise. Better than your father, I'd wager."

"Henry!" reproved Polly, giving her husband a nudge.

"What? It's true, his father can't manage to hold a job for more than few months before getting sacked and ending up down at the pub again. Is that not so, young man?"

"Yes, it is. But I'm nothing like him, sir. I don't drink, sir. And I won't. Ever."

"Oh? Not even a pint every now and again with your mates?"

Severus shook his head firmly. "I don't care for it, sir. And the taste isn't worth the sore head the morning after, or anything else that goes along with it. If not for his drinking, my father would be able to hold down a job and not end up tossed out on his ear. But he refuses to give it up and no one can tell him differently. But I'm not like my father, Mr. Evans. I refuse to be a slave to the bottle." He met the other's eyes squarely.

Henry Evans nodded. "Good. You're smarter than I'd have given you credit for. Because I'd hate for my Lily to end up with a deadbeat drunk for a boyfriend, who'd embarrass her by getting sozzled in every pub in Yorkshire. I don't hold with boys your age drinking, smoking, or doing drugs. Or having sex with my daughter. Am I clear? I catch you doing any of that, Snape, and you are no longer welcome in my home. I'll throw you out immediately, no excuses, _after_ I've kicked your arse six ways to Sunday, that is."

Severus swallowed. "Understood, sir. I would never disgrace myself or Lily that way. I have nothing but respect for your daughter, sir."

"Indeed? We shall see about that. You seem like a decent fellow, Mr. Snape, but your background is against you."

Severus felt his heart sink to his shoes. So, that was it then. He should have known it was too good to be true. No matter what he did, his father's damn shadow loomed over him and devoured him. When would he ever be free of it? He wondered bitterly. He wished once, just once, that someone would judge him for what he was, not what his father was. It simply wasn't fair. But then, when had anything in his life ever been fair? Lily had been the one good and beautiful thing in it, and now even that was gone.

He was tempted to jump up and yell, "But sir, I love your daughter, doesn't that count for anything?"

But he remained silent, his pride holding him mute.

"Henry, that's not fair," began Polly angrily. "To judge the boy because of his dad-"

"Hush, Polly, I'm not done yet." Henry held up a hand. "I'm willing to let you have a trial run, Snape, in spite of your dad's reputation as a drunken bum. But first I have a proposition for you."

Severus lifted his head, hope sparkling in his gaze. "Sir?"

"I just got word that an employee of mine is moving away and can't work in my pharmacy any longer. So . . .I'm offering you her place. You would be expected to be my assistant, which would mean doing jobs like filling customers prescriptions and taking orders over the phone and the counter and also ringing them up. You would also be required to keep accurate tabs on my stock and re-order what I am running low on. You said you needed a job for the summer. Would you be willing to work for me then?"

Henry's eyes were challenging, but Severus did not back away. He sensed that the older man was testing him, that this job was not offered merely because Henry needed another worker, but also to see if Severus was trustworthy. It was his chance to prove himself.

"I will, sir. And thank you."

"Good." Henry smiled and offered his hand. "Shake on it then."

Severus clasped his hand.

Polly was smiling too. "I'm sure you'll do fine, dear."

"Now then, as far as taking Lily out goes, you are to bring her home from the movies or wherever at ten o'clock sharp, no later. And if you do get delayed for any reason, you are to call me immediately so that I or my wife or Petunia can come and pick you up. And I am to know where you are going at all times. You will refrain from taking Lily into any unsavory parts of town, like near the riverside and the pubs. And lastly, there will be no hanky-panky with her, Mr. Snape, I will not have my daughter's reputation or her person compromised. Can you obey those rules?"

"Yes, sir." Severus said, wondering what the hell was it with people suspecting him of seducing Lily. _Do I have some kind of brand or something on my forehead that screams-Look Out! He's a Sex Maniac? First my father, now Mr. Evans. Not that I haven't dreamed of Lily and I in bed, but I would never do that unless we were engaged at the very least._

"Very good, boy. You have my permission to date my daughter, three nights a week or the weekend, if you prefer. Come down to the pharmacy and we'll discuss your hours and wages and so forth tomorrow morning. I open up at eight-thirty and we close at eight. But you won't be working night shift, just during the day."

Severus nodded, a smile creeping over his face. He had done it, unbelievable as it seemed. He had survived Henry Evans' suspicions and gotten permission to go out with the girl of his dreams. He prayed it was an omen of things to come.

"Thank you, Mr. Evans."

"Yes, well you're welcome . . .Severus." Henry smiled. "Polly, tell Tuney and Lily to stop listening in the hallway and come in here and greet our guest properly."

"Lily, Tuney, come in here and bring the tea tray and the dessert."

There was a squeal of delight and then Lily flew into the room. "You said yes, didn't you, Dad?" She ran over and hugged her father. "I told you Severus was nothing like his father. Thank you!" Then she spun around and hugged Severus and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Didn't I tell you everything would work out?"

He smiled up at her. "Yes, I should have known better than to doubt you, little oracle. Your predictions are always right on the nose."

"The ones I had so far," she laughed.

Petunia entered with a large tray on which were a tea service, a pot of steaming black Bohea and some small cakes and tarts. She set the tray on the table and then pulled up chairs for herself and her sister.

"Strawberry tart, Severus?" she offered, sounding rather snooty.

Severus hesitated, then took one. "Thank you, Petunia. Did you make these?"

Petunia looked startled. "You know I bake?"

"Lily told me."

"No, Mum made these. But I can bake lemon tarts and cake as well."

Severus bit into the tart and it tasted fabulous. For once, everything seemed to be going right. And yet, a small corner of his heart wondered just how long it would last?

For it was a known fact that nothing good in his life ever lasted.

**A/N: How did you like the contrast between Sev & Lily's home life?**

**Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific is a real shampoo, my sister loved it back when they still made it.**

**Trivia: Bonus 50 House points & chocolate frogs to anyone who can tell me the artist of the song Lily was humming.**

**Thanks to all who have reviewed and for those of you who haven't yet, please do so.**


	8. The New Assistant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus goes to work for Mr. Evans--then out on a date with Lily

When Severus tapped on the window of Evans' Pharmacy at seven o'clock Monday morning, the streets of High Bentham were quiet, only an occasional car drove by and most people were just waking up and heading off to work. There were a few cars by the petrol station filling up and some more by Mae Emmalene's Breakfast Nook, the only decent place to get breakfast at this time of day. Severus had eaten a few slices of toast, coffee, and some bacon before leaving the house, at Eileen's insistence, even though his stomach felt like a dozen fairies had taken up residence in it. He was dressed in his best set of slacks, they were a dark charcoal gray, and wearing a soft button down light blue collared shirt. He had a tie stuffed in a pocket, but he hated them and would only wear it if Mr. Evans said he must. He was wearing his trainers, because he didn't have any dress shoes, but he'd scrubbed them good with soap and a brush the night before so they were decently clean and shiny. He had pulled his hair back, reluctantly, because Eileen told him it wasn't professional to have his hair in his face.

"Sev, people want to see who they're talking to when they deal with someone. They like to look you in the eye. And you have beautiful eyes, son, as I'm sure Lily has told you," Eileen had murmured just before giving him a quick hug.

"Mum, _please_." He blushed. But he hugged her back. He was wary of an adult man touching him, but his mother had always represented comfort to him, and he loved her, even though she could barely protect him from his father.

"Okay, Sev. I won't embarrass you anymore," she chuckled. "Have a good day at work. You'll do fine."

 _I hope so,_ Severus thought agitatedly, then bid his mother goodbye and began the ten minute walk to the main street of town where Evans' Pharmacy was located.

He tapped on the window again, wondering where Petunia was. Mr. Evans had told him that Petunia would be there to let him in and show him around before they opened for business. He wondered if perhaps she had overslept, for he had been waiting five minutes.

Then she appeared, unlocking the door and ushering him inside and locking it again. She eyed him up and down critically. "You'll do, Snape."

He lofted an eyebrow and said sarcastically, "Glad I meet with your approval, my lady."

Petunia snorted. "As well you ought to, Snape. You're lucky Annie Lestblader wanted to go to university, otherwise you'd never have been offered a job here. You better do your job and no slacking, Snape."

Severus gritted his teeth, for the older girl outranked him and she could tell him what to do and he would have to obey her. "Don't worry, Tuney. I know how to work hard."

"Unlike your father," she remarked. She turned to go further inside the shop.

He stiffened, then caught her shoulder and pulled her around to face him.

"Hey! What are you doing?" she demanded, smoothing the creases in her sensible gray skirt and pale pink top angrily.

"Listen to me. I'm not my father, Petunia, so stop judging me by him. I'm sick and tired of people throwing what he does back at me, as if I'm to blame somehow. Or that it's something I've inherited, like a disease. I haven't. My name's Severus, not Tobias. All right?"

She looked faintly ashamed. "All right, Sn-Severus," she corrected. "Come on, I need to show you how to run the register and where all the slips are for orders and everything. It's not hard once you get the hang of it, but sometimes when it gets busy, it's easy to get confused. But if you need something or don't understand something, just ask me or Dad or Paul, who helps him in the storeroom, we all know where everything is."

Severus nodded, though he didn't think he would need to ask for too much help, he was good at memorizing things.

For the first hour, Petunia had him running the register, making sure he knew how to count money and give back change correctly. As she had said, the register wasn't hard once you knew how to enter all the codes for the different medicines and other items into it, and everything in the pharmacy was tagged with a specific four to six number barcode. Groups of items in the same category-like antacids, cold medicines, and so forth-all started with the same three digits, so you could figure out where it came from. Not that there were too many people stopping by the pharmacy this early in the morning. Severus only had to ring up three customers that first hour, leaving Petunia time to show him the prescription storage rack, where all the filled prescriptions for customers were kept, waiting to be picked up.

"They only get put here after they've been called up, see this little slip here?" she indicated a small pink slip stapled to the side of each prescription bag. "You put that on after you've called the customer and told them their order's here. But I'll show you how to do that a bit later. You making out okay?"

"Fine," he answered cautiously, pleased that she was at least willing to be civil to him. He hated working with snippy co-workers, it irked him to no end, which was why he often preferred mowing lawns and weeding flowerbeds, because then he didn't have to deal with any attitudes from people.

"Good. I'm going in the back office to call up a few more customers. Yell if you need me," Petunia said, then went through a door marked **EMPLOYEES ONLY**. _Hmm. Maybe Lily was right, and he really isn't such a bad kid after all._

The next customer Severus had to deal with, however, was the crochety half-deaf Mrs. James. Ida James was pushing eighty-five, had outlived two husbands and one son, and had decided that her age entitled her to be grouchy. She had come to pick up a prescription for her arthritis, a new medication, and it was expensive, and she was none too thrilled about it.

"Hello, how may I help you?" asked Severus politely.

Ida squinted at him through her exceptionally thick bifocals. "Eh? Speak up, laddie? My ears ain't what they used t'be. You new 'round here? Never seen you here before."

"Uh, yes. I just started this morning," Severus admitted, then could have bitten his tongue.

"Eh? Newbie, are ya? Hope you're better than that last gel Henry hired. All she wanted t'do was moon over boys. Girls these days! Playin' round before they get married, if they ever marry at all." She stabbed a crooked finger at him. "And you young boys ain't much better! Takin' advantage of some young starry-eyed thing! D'ye got a girl . . .what's your name, laddie?"

"Severus," he replied, backing away slightly. What was up with this batty old lady?

"Good Roman name," Ida said approvingly. "There was a Roman Emperor named Severus and a saint too. D'ye know that, lad?"

"No, ma'am."

"Humph! Guess they don't teach history these days, now do they? So, d'ye got a girl?"

"I . . .yes, I do," he managed to get out, wondering if she had come here to gossip or to pick up a prescription. _Not that it's any business of yours, you old busybody_.

"Ah, figgered so. You mind you treat her right, boy, else I'll whack you one with my cane," she threatened, waving her pink cane at him pointedly.

Severus fought to keep from laughing. Ida was a frail thing who looked like a stiff wind would blow her over. But he said respectfully, "Yes, ma'am. Have you come to pick up a prescription, err . . .Mrs. . . ?"

"James. Ida James. Been a customer here for over forty years, since before Henry took over the business from his da. My arthritis has been acting up summat, and the doctor he tells me to try this new fangled medicine. Cost me a mint and my pension ain't what it used to be."

Severus turned and found the prescription marked James, Ida, on the rack and took it down and began to ring it up. "Will there be anything else, Mrs. James?"

"No, that'll do this time, lad." She pulled out her purse and paid him, muttering again about how expensive the pills were. "Y'know, you remind me of my son, Sammy. He were a likely lad, went off to fight Hitler back in 41, an' he never came home again." She shook her head sadly. "It was a long time ago, yet I still remember it. But you have his look about you, Severus, aye, that ye do." She gave a nod and began walking towards the door, leaning heavily on her pink cane.

Just then Mr. Evans arrived for work, and she greeted him. "Good morning, Henry."

"Good morning, Ida!" Henry said, smiling at the old woman, who was one of his regulars. "How are your joints? Any better today?"

"A bit, considering the weather. Just picked up my new medicine."

"Good. Tuney ring you up?"

"No, that new boy of yours did."

"Mr. Snape."

"Aye, and I think ye hired a good one, for once, Henry," Ida told him firmly. Then she swept past him, continuing on home.

Henry raised an eyebrow. Then he continued on into the pharmacy. "Good morning, Mr. Snape. Getting on all right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Fine. I'm impressed, you actually made Ida James say something complimentary about a person under twenty that isn't a member of my family." Henry chuckled. "How did you manage that?"

Severus shrugged. "I don't know. She thought I looked like her son that died."

"Ah. Yes, Sammy, who was shot down over Normandy." Henry nodded in understanding. "Terrible thing, that, to lose a child. Old girl's never really gotten over it, in spite of it been over thirty years ago. Well, good job, Mr. Snape. Where's Petunia?"

"In the office, sir, making some phone calls."

"Right. Well, I'm sure I have several dozen prescriptions to fill. Has Petunia shown you how to work the labeler machine yet?"

"No, sir."

"Oh. Well, when she's done with her calls, I'll put her up front for a bit and show you what we do in the back here." Henry said, then he removed his coat and went into the back portion of the pharmacy where the office was and the stock room and the place where they filled all the prescription bottles and labeled them.

Severus allowed himself a faint smile as Mr. Evans disappeared through the employee door. So far, things seemed to be working out well.

But things changed a half-an-hour later, when Severus went back to help Henry label the new prescriptions with the label machine. The machine itself wasn't hard to work, though getting the label stuck on straight was a bit of a pain in the arse, but Severus would have been fine if Mr. Evans wasn't hovering over him so much.

It made him nervous, to have his boss looming over him, it reminded him uncomfortably of Tobias, who used to tell Severus to do something and then wait nearby to see if he screwed up, so he could rant and smack him afterwards. Being in close proximity to an adult man made him clumsy, so instead of picking up the empty prescription bottle and affixing the label to it, he knocked over a whole row of bottles instead.

They fell off the counter with several loud pings and Severus cringed and wished he could just shrivel up and die. _Stupid clumsy idiot! Now look what you did. He's gonna sack you for sure now._ He knelt to pick up the bottles, feeling heat flush his skin like a bad sunburn. "Sorry, sir. I'm not usually this clumsy. Sorry," he babbled, waiting for the familiar scream and the cuff to the back of the head.

Henry Evans looked momentarily annoyed, then he saw the way the boy was kneeling on the floor . . .almost cringing . . .and he frowned. "It's all right, Severus. Accidents happen. But it's a good thing there were no pills in them."

"Yes, sir," Severus said, and he relaxed a bit at the quiet tone, relieved Henry wasn't going to jump on him for such a stupid mistake.

Henry eyed the youngster, not liking what he saw of the boy's reactions. The tight stiff shoulders, almost as if he feared Henry were going to strike him . . .Unknown to Severus, Henry had been a school counselor before he was a pharmacist, back in the early days of his marriage, before he completed his pharmacology degree. And he knew the invisible cues Severus was displaying were signs that not everything was well in the Snape household. _I'd bet my last golf club that rotter Tobias takes the back of his hand to him, at the least. I didn't even raise my voice and he was already drawing away from me._

Severus stood up, the empty containers in his hands, and began to line them up on the counter again, not looking at his employer.

"All right, Mr. Snape," Henry said in a calm tone, trying to put the boy at ease. "Let's try that again, shall we? If you can do it well, I'll leave you alone here for two hours, to make labels for all these prescriptions here," he indicated a piece of paper. "Then we'll break for lunch."

"Yes, Mr. Evans." Severus mumbled, keeping his head down. He wished his hair were not pulled back, then he could hide behind it.

"Good." Henry reached out to give the boy a light pat on the shoulder.

Severus flinched, it was a small flinch, but nevertheless it told Henry more than he wanted to know. Clearly the boy was used to being cuffed, not touched gently, he thought grimly. _Bastard Tobias!_ Henry scowled.

Then he turned back to watching his employee make labels.

Severus tried to skip lunch, claiming he wasn't hungry, but Henry refused to hear of it. "You need to eat, boy, you're a sapling. Here, have some of this chicken, my wife packed enough to feed an army, don't know what she thinks Tuney and I eat."

Before Severus could protest, Henry had given him a plate with roasted chicken, some potato salad and pickles and crisps, plus a bottle of spring water. "Sir, I . . ." he began awkwardly, embarrassed yet again. _Merlin, what does he think I am, a charity case? Or is he just being nice?_ He wished he could refuse the food, but the fact was, he was starving, he was perpetually hungry nowadays, and there was never enough food at home to satisfy him. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Henry said, filling his own plate and then Petunia's as well.

Petunia hadn't said much to him beyond a few more instructions, but at least she wasn't being snotty to him, which was a relief, since he was still smarting from that mistake with the prescription bottles.

He began to eat hungrily.

After that, Severus had only an hour left to work, since he was under eighteen and not allowed to work a full day by law. He finished by stocking some shelves with shampoo and conditioner, waiting for some comment from Petunia about how greasy his hair was, but it never came. He wondered why she was being so nice, then shrugged and figured perhaps it was because her father was there.

Actually, Petunia was starting to rethink her opinion of Snape as a deadbeat after seeing how competent he was on register and handling old lady James. Petunia thought Ida was a grumpy babbling old woman, though she was always polite to the woman. Yet Severus had won her over, and she rarely took to many people. Perhaps, just perhaps, there was more to Snape that met the eye.

When Roger Kent came in for his shift, he was a hefty seventeen-year-old that mostly helped Paul with the daily shipment in the stockroom, he took one look at Severus and sneered, "What are you doing here, Snape?"

Severus looked up from an order he was packaging and said angrily, "I work here. Why?"

"Just wonderin' is all, how a thief like you came to be hired?" laughed the older boy. "The boss will regret that for sure."

Severus flushed hotly, he knew Roger from primary school days, when the other boy used to take delight in tattling on other students, including Severus, getting them in trouble with teachers. "Shove off, Kent. I'm surprised you even finished school. Learn how to write your name yet or are you still paying your friend Mosby to do your assignments?"

"Real funny, Snape. Better watch that mouth though, because I can still pound the daylights out of you."

Severus sneered, then finished with the order, walked back into the office to tell Henry he was done with work today. Once he had leave to go, he went quickly, not wanting to linger while Kent was in the store.

Still, it hadn't been a complete disaster for a first day, he mused as he returned home. And at least he was making good money.

On Saturday, he met Lily downtown at the ice cream shoppe, she worked nearly the same schedule as he did-Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. They were off on Wednesdays and the weekend. She was waiting for him in front of the ice cream parlor, wearing a light turquoise sundress and sandals. Her hair was swept back by a flowered headband and she was smiling.

He felt his breath catch. She was so lovely, like a breath of spring air, and he still found it hard to believe she had chosen him. Yet here she was, waiting for him. He brushed at an invisible stain on his new pale green T-shirt, that and his new jeans were one of the first things he had purchased when he received his paycheck. But he had enough in his pocket for an ice cream float for each of them.

"Hi, Sev! How was your first week working with Tuney and my dad?" Lily inquired, her eyes dancing like a mischievous kitten's. "Did they make you want to pull out all your hair yet?"

"Uh, not yet," he responded with a smirk. "They can be demanding, but they're nothing compared to my father. He could make a drill sergeant look like a teddy bear."

Lily cast him a sympathetic glance. "Well, at least you can get out of the house more now. And you don't have to get heat stroke doing yard work in this heat either." That summer was one of the hottest anyone in town could recall.

"True. At least the pharmacy is air conditioned, and this job is more to my liking than mowing lawns," he gave her a smile. "Your dad, he thinks I don't eat enough, so he ends up bringing me lunch, even though I can buy my own."

"Really? He must like you then, Sev, because that's the first time I ever heard of him doing that to anyone except Tuney. He certainly wouldn't do it for that prat Kent." Lily grimaced, for she disliked Roger as much as Severus did, he was always eyeing her rudely every time she came into the pharmacy, and she tried to avoid him as much as possible. She smiled at her boyfriend and said, "See? Didn't I tell you it would work out?"

"Yes, and I'm sorry I doubted you, little oracle," he murmured, taking her into his arms and kissing her gently. Then he reluctantly drew away. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."

"You look pretty in that dress, Lil."

"Thanks. Tuney helped me pick it out." Lily said, blushing at that, yet secretly delighted that he had noticed. "I like that color shirt on you. It suits you."

He chuckled, amazed that she had complimented him. "Well, I am a Slytherin. So green looks good on us."

"I look good in green too."

"Oh? Then maybe you can wear something green next time and let me see," he suggested, his lips curving up into a suggestive smile. "Evergreen, like your eyes."

"We'll see," she teased.

"Come on, let's get some ice cream before we melt," he said then, wiping sweat off his forehead. His jeans were a bit too heavy for this weather, but he refused to wear shorts, because then everyone could see the scars Tobias left on his legs from previous whippings.

They entered the shoppe, which was crowded with teens and parents with whiny screeching children.

The noise broke over Severus like a thunderous wave, and for one instant he was tempted to turn tail and run. But then Lily took his hand and suddenly he couldn't bear to disappoint her, they had been looking forward to this outing for days.

He winced as a toddler began shrieking "I W-A-A-A-NT IT!" on the top of her lungs.

That wail caused him to wince and cringe, for he had always had sensitive hearing. "Lord, someone give that kid codeine," he muttered, fighting the temptation to cover his ears.

"Either that or a good spanking," remarked another patron, as the child continue to throw a fit.

But at last the spoiled child was dragged away from the display of ice cream cakes by her exasperated parent and the shoppe quieted. Lily turned to Severus and breathed a sigh of relief. "Phew! I never knew a kid could scream that much and still have a voice left. So, what would you like, Sev?"

Severus studied the menu on the wall. "How about a chocolate malt shake with whipped cream and a banana on top?"

"Mmm. Sounds delicious." Lily licked her lips.

"We could share," he offered shyly.

"Double Dutch?" she inquired.

"Yes. D'you mind?"

"No, of course not. But . . .you've got to let me feed you a banana piece."

"Lily, we're in public," he hissed.

She giggled. "Not with your head in my lap, silly! Off a spoon!" She mock swatted him on the back of the head. "What were you thinking, Snape?"

"Something very bad," he admitted, grinning naughtily.

"I'll bet. Well?"

"Deal."

He placed the order, telling the server behind the counter that it was a shake for two and they would need two of everything.

"Coming right up," said the gangly freckled youth. He turned to get the large glass and muttered to his co-worker, "Lucky bastard."

Severus found himself wanting to preen. _You don't know how right you are, mate._ But when he reached into his pocket to pay, Lily stopped him.

"Sev, no, let me."

He shook his head stubbornly. "Lily, I'm not broke. My treat."

"Sev . . ."

He locked eyes with her. "Lily. Let me do this."

She nodded, understanding his pride would be hurt if she insisted. "All right. Thanks." Then she hugged him.

Severus had the satisfaction of seeing every guy in the place shooting him envious looks.

They took their shake over to a secluded table in the corner, along with the two long handled spoons and straws and napkins and proceeded to playfully feed each other bananas and whipped cream and sip from the shake together, their noses almost touching, sending each other soulful messages with their eyes.

But the idyllic moment was ruined by a rather nasal voice sneering, "Hey, Lily, does your da know you're swapping spit with the town reject's son?"

Severus and Lily both turned to see Roger Kent standing a few feet from their table, glaring nastily at Severus.

"Mind your own business, Kent," Lily ordered, her eyes flashing.

The sandy-haired boy shrugged, he was half a head bigger than Severus and built like a rugby player. "Awright, Evans, but your da won't be too happy once he learns Greasy Snape is making out with you." He guffawed, and looked at Severus. "Snape, why don't you leave the decent girls alone and go find yourself a piece of tail elsewhere? Making out with the boss's daughter . . .your arse will be out on the sidewalk if her old man ever finds out, y'know. But I won't tell if you leave now."

Severus shot him a look that should have made him burst into flames where he stood. "Sod off, Kent. For your information, her father gave me permission to date her. Now get away from me."

"Liar. As if old man Evans would let gutter trash like you date his daughter." Kent growled.

"It's true, you dumb git!" Lily snapped. "Go and ask my dad if you don't believe me."

Kent laughed. "I think I will." Then his eyes narrowed. "After I kick the gutter trash's arse for putting his hands on you."

Severus was about to snarl a reply to that when another voice spoke up from the table behind Kent. "Hey, laddie, ye get your nosy backside outta here and quit bothering them that never did ye no harm."

It was Ida James, the elderly lady that had come in to buy arthritis pills.

Kent whirled around. "Shut your gob, Grandma! Nobody asked you to put your two pence in!"

Ida looked as if she were about to asphyxiate, she was so furious. "How dare you! I have never been so insulted in my life!"

"Then maybe you ought to just do everyone a favor and die," Kent snarled nastily, turning back to his original targets.

"Wicked insolent brat! You need a good lesson in manners!" Ida bristled. "If I was ten years younger, I'd give you one."

"Oh, blow it out your arse!"

Then he yelped as Ida's cane connected solidly with his backside.

Before anyone could move, Kent spun back around and shoved Ida so hard that he knocked her and her chair over onto the floor.

Several of the teens watching gasped.

"You're freaking crazy, Kent. Attacking an old lady that way!"

"Man, what's _he_ been smoking?"

"Brute!" Lily cried, getting up to help the poor old woman off the floor. She knelt down next to her. "Are you okay, Mrs. James?"

"I . . .I think so. Just a bit bruised, miss."

"Forget that old bag, Lily." Kent ordered, going to grab Lily's arm.

She jerked away. "Don't touch me!" she spat. "Go home, before I call the police and have you arrested for assault, you bloody bounder!"

"The hag deserved it, she belted me with her damn cane!"

He went to grab Lily's wrist again.

Until another hand fastened tightly upon his shoulder and a soft voice growled, "She said don't touch her. Are you a total imbecile, Kent? Leave her alone!"

"Or what? You going to hit me?" Kent began to laugh, turning around to jab a finger into Severus's chest. "I'd love to see it, Snape, you pansy-arsed scummy piece of-"

He never finished his sentence.

Because his jaw was snapped shut by the force of Severus's punch.

Severus knew the other was bigger and stronger than he was, and that he would get only one chance to do any real damage, and so he made his first punch count.

Kent reeled, staggering backwards, crashing into a table and overturning it, spilling ice cream and dessert cups all over.

Girls screamed and some boys even started to cheer. "Nice right hook, mate!"

But Kent, while woozy and whimpering, was not down.

He started to get to his feet, his eyes promising a world of hurt.

Until the owner of the ice cream shoppe came out and yelled, "Break it up, you hoodlums! I just called the constables, you bloody destructive kids! Maybe a night in jail will teach you! Who started this? You?"

Kent shook his head. "No, sir. He did." He pointed his hand at Severus.

"That's a lie!" cried Lily. "Sir, Kent came over to our table and started insulting me and then when we asked him to leave he wouldn't." She carefully helped Mrs. James to her feet.

"She'll say anything to protect him, sir. She's his girlfriend."

"That true?"

Lily nodded curtly.

"Teddy, young Lily is telling the truth," spoke up Ida. "That insolent pup swore at me and then knocked me down when I told him to leave young Severus and Lily alone."

Now Teddy Curtis looked very put out. "I don't believe this. A brawl in my shoppe. I'm sorry, Ida, are you hurt?"

"No, just a little shocked is all. And that rowdy brute caused it all, Teddy. Let the constables arrest him, not the other two, they did nothing save defend themselves."

Mr. Curtis looked torn. He glanced around at the other customers. "Is that what you saw?"

At all the nods and confirmations, he waved his hand. "All right, you two. Get outta here."

Severus took Lily's hand, heaving a huge sigh of relief. He had been certain he was going to be arrested. Then he turned to Ida, and murmured, "Thank you, Mrs. James. Do you need help getting home?"

"No, laddie, I can still walk. And think nothing of it, boy. That young scalawag got what he deserved." She patted Severus's arm, then the three walked out of the shoppe just as the police cars drew up.

The three hurried down the sidewalk, ignoring the policemen who headed into the ice cream shoppe.

"Best ye be getting on home, you two," Ida called, waving at them from the corner.

Lily waved back, then watched as the old lady limped the few steps to her small house. Then she turned to Severus and said, "Well, that was some first date."

"Sorry. That wasn't what I had planned."

"Oh, Sev! I'm not blaming you." She stroked his cheek. "It was ruddy Kent's fault. But you were brilliant, Mr. Snape."

He blushed. "It was just one punch, Lily."

"It was a great one," she laughed, then she kissed him soundly.

When he could speak again, he said, "Next time we're going to the cinema or the park. Early, before all the idiots are awake, Miss Evans. So we won't be disturbed."

"Fine with me, Sev. I wonder if he got arrested?"

"Look," Severus pointed down the street, and they saw Kent being dragged into the patrol car.

"Good. He won't be coming back to work for Dad anytime soon." Lily said, satisfaction in her tone. "C'mon, Sev. Let's go to the park and sit on the swings."

He agreed and they walked the five blocks to the old play park, where they had first met as children, and swung on the swings together, holding hands and laughing like idiots.

And for the first time ever, Severus Snape felt like a hero.

Some two days later, Ida received a small package. Inside it was a small glass vial of a brown liquid, and a note that said: _Mix two tablespoons in strong tea and drink before bedtime. It should help your arthritis and aches and pains better than those expensive pills. It's a natural remedy._

_SS & LE_

Ida James smiled. "Aye, I'll do that. Tonight."

She followed the directions and drank the tea infused with a Bone Repair Elixir and in the morning she felt as if she were ten years younger. She giggled like a schoolgirl, danced a little across her kitchen floor, then threw the bottle of pills into the rubbish bin. "Humph! Knew those new-fangled things wouldn't work."

Hidden behind a hedge next to the kitchen window, Lily and Severus exchanged identical grins. It appeared the potion had worked beautifully, even though it was the first time either of them had tried such a complex healing elixir.

"Are we good or what?" Lily whispered as they slipped away and back onto the sidewalk.

"The best. Slughorn would give us Outstandings if he knew."

"Definitely." She checked her watch. "Better hurry, Sev, before you're late for work."

"Right. See you on Saturday, Lil." He kissed her goodbye, then made his way back down the street to Evans' Pharmacy.

**Next: A letter from Regulus spells trouble for Severus**


	9. All Because of A Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus receives a letter from Reg, kicking off a bad fight between him and Tobias

The next Saturday, they went to the cinema, Lily could get in for free since she worked there and bring a guest for half admission, and also get free snacks from the concession stand. They shared a large bucket of buttered popcorn and a giant soda while watching the summer blockbuster _JAWS_. Severus had never spent a holiday by the sea, and so didn't have much of a reference point for sheer terror about sharks, unlike Lily, who used to spend lots of time by the sea on holiday in Cornwall.

She spent half the movie hiding her eyes whenever the score came on that meant Jaws was hunting a new victim and once she even jumped right into Severus' lap, when the shark came up out of the water with all its teeth showing to swallow a girl whole.

"Whoa!" Severus yelped, one minute he was watching the shark attacking and the next he found himself with an armful of squealing teenage girl. "Lily, Lily it's just a movie!" He hugged her then, unmindful of the spilled popcorn all over his sneakers.

"Oh my God, Severus!" she whimpered, burying her face in his shoulder. "That damn shark . . ."

"Shhh . . .it can't come out of the screen," he murmured, stroking her fiery hair, struggling to keep from grinning. Normally he didn't care much for sensational horror flicks, but any movie that made Lily jump into his lap was all right in his book. "It's over, you can look now."

"Okay," she peeked over her shoulder and breathed a sigh of relief. Then she blushed and started to climb out of Severus's lap. "Uh, sorry . . .I don't mean to act like a scaredycat or anything, but just the thought of a shark coming after me like that . . .I may never swim in the ocean again . . ."

He pulled her to him. "It's not real, remember? Stay here."

"I'm all right now, Sev."

"And what about next time the shark eats someone?" he teased. He shifted so she was sitting more comfortably on him. "This way all I have to do is hold you, little oracle." He inhaled the sweet spicy fragrance that clung to her hair and sighed in bliss.

"You really don't mind?"

"Not at all," he whispered in her ear, then he kissed her playfully.

"Severus! Watch the movie!"

"I'd rather watch you."

She giggled and kissed him back. "You're unbelievable, Snape!"

"That's one way to put it," he smirked, cuddling her into his shoulder. Merlin, but he could hold her like this forever. Too bad the movie only lasted two hours, he thought wistfully.

Lily nestled deeper into his embrace, delighting in the feel of his arms about her, all sleek and sinewy. With him holding her, she feared nothing, not man-eating sharks, or dark curses, or even the one they called Voldemort. Severus, despite not being as athletic as James Potter, made her feel safe and protected and most of all, loved.

They watched the rest of the movie that way, only moving back to their original positions when the lights came back up.

The rest of July passed in a whirlwind haze of work and dates to the movies and the local diner and walks in the park together. It was the perfect summer, and certainly the best one either could remember.

Even Petunia had changed her attitude towards Severus after over a month of working with him, and seeing that he was a decent worker who did things quickly and competently and treated her sister like a royal lady, never groping her or begging her to shag him, the way her own boyfriend sometimes did. It was odd, but for all the difference in their backgrounds, a tiny corner of Petunia's heart envied her little sister, because Lily's boyfriend was not overbearing and demanding and knew how to treat a girl right.

Sometimes Vernon treated her like an object, pawing her, and making demands on her that scared her, for she did not want to have sex before she was married, too many other girls did and then the guy ended up dumping them afterwards. Petunia had vowed to never let that happen to her, and so she kept refusing Vernon's overtures. As a result, Vernon was grouchy, and lately he had been avoiding her, which once would have devastated her, but now made her just shrug her shoulders.

But she would have thought nothing of Vernon's behavior, assuming it was typical of all adolescent males, if she had not seen the way Severus was with Lily. Not that the two did not quarrel on occasion, for both had flashfire tempers, but their quarrels were brief and usually did not last more than a day before they apologized and made up. Unlike Vernon, who was still sulking over her latest refusal to do it in the backseat of his new convertible.

"Don't you understand, Vern? I want our first time to . . .be special, to mean something. Not just . . .going at it in the backseat," she had tried to explain last week.

"You just like to play the tease, Pet," he had sulked. "I know your sort. Lead a guy on and then put on the breaks."

"I am not like that! Why can't we just go out and enjoy each other's company, you know, go to dinner and a movie, like we used to? Why does everything have to be about sex all of a sudden?" she cried angrily.

"Ha! That's a joke! You won't even let me cop a feel, Miss Ice Princess."

She glared at him. "Last time you did that, Dursley, you nearly ripped my dress off. You need to learn some self control. I'm a lady, not an animal."

"You're an infuriating pain in the arse is what you are!" he had shouted. "Fine! I'll leave you be, if that's the way you want it, Miss Evans! Maybe you should have joined a convent." Then he had hopped in his brand new cherry red convertible and drove off.

Petunia had stared after him, blinking sharply, hurt and angry. _Maybe I should have, since I can't seem to muster up any enthusiasm for my own boyfriend when he kisses me anymore._ Then she had walked back inside, shaking her head and dabbing her eyes on her sleeve.

It was odd, but there were times she envied Severus, because even though he was poor and lived with an alcoholic father, at least he had Lily, who loved him just the way he was. Would she ever know a love like that?

Severus had just arrived home from work that afternoon to find a chicken casserole and a loaf of bread out on the table with a note from his mother telling him she wouldn't be home until after nine, her boss had her brewing late this evening, and he should eat the casserole for dinner.

Severus did so, leaving enough for Tobias and Eileen, then carefully washing his plate and fork in the sink. He wondered where his father was, it was now after five, and then he recalled this was Friday night, which was poker night down at the Black Bull, and he probably wouldn't be seeing Tobias either until later that night.

Which was fine with him, then he could get in some precious study time with his new potions book he had just purchased, he had given his mother most of last week's paycheck to exchange so she could pick it up for him, it was called _Advanced Elixers and Drafts for Serious Potion Makers by Almardeen Asphodel._

He promptly curled up on his bed with the book and proceeded to lose himself in it, until he grew thirsty and went downstairs to get himself a drink.

While he was pouring himself a glass of juice, he heard a cautious hoot and a tapping from the kitchen window. He spun about, then carefully unlatched the window and let in the large brown owl that hovered there, a letter tied to its feet.

Severus quickly undid the letter and then fed the owl a piece of chicken snitched from the casserole. "All right, best you get going, my father will have a bloody fit if he ever saw you," the young wizard told the owl, gently stroking its feathers. "Thanks!" he called as the owl took wing and then vanished into the night.

He took the letter along with the glass of juice over to the kitchen table and sat down to read it. He recognized the loopy handwriting and the stag and chevron seal as the Black crest, which told him the letter was from Regulus.

He carefully opened it, and slid out the heavy creamy parchment.

_Dear Sev,_

_Just wanted to write and see how your summer's been so far. Mine's been pretty good, all things considered. Mother and Father seemed happy to have us home, that is until Sirius started a major fight with Mother over going to the Malfoy's ball. It's one of the big social events in the pureblood calendar over the summer, anyone who's everyone goes to it, they host it every year. Elysia and Sulla Malfoy always invite us, and I don't know what the hell was up with Siri this year, but he flat out refused to go, told my mother that he wasn't going to mingle with supporters of You-Know-Who, that'd he rather die than do that, and he didn't see how she could expose her kids to that kind of thing and still call herself a mother._

_There was more, but I won't bother writing it, let's just say it was damn nasty, and Mother ended up slapping him one for speaking that way to her, and said he was a disgrace and to get out of her sight. My father just stood there, shaking his head, not saying much, and Sirius stormed up to his room, yelling he was going to stay with Potter for the rest of the summer._

_Then Mother turned and yelled at my father, wanting to know why he didn't say something to his son, or discipline him or something. Dad just mumbled something like, "What d'you want me to do, Walla? He's too old to spank, and grounding him doesn't work either. I'll talk to him later, when he's calmed down some." Then he went into the library with his firewhiskey decanter, and when he does that, he usually ends up sleeping in there, passed out on the settle._

_I feel bad for him, he's always caught inbetween Mother and Siri, like a bone inbetween two jealous dogs. I couldn't stand being in the same house with anybody after that and I took my broom and went flying, even though it gives Mother fits when I fly at night-one of her cousins crashed and died that way when she was a girl. But I had to do something._

_So now Sirius is gone to Potter's house for the rest of the summer and I went to the Malfoys' ball like always, not that I really wanted to go, mind, but I did it to make Mother happy. And this time I wasn't bored to death watching people dance and get drunk like always._

_Because guess who else was at the ball? Cindy Graves. And we danced all night and I had a smashing time, except for when Lucius dragged me into the billiard room and tried to get me to attend some damn pureblood club of his again. The Iron Masks or something like that. I hate those kinds of things, but he wouldn't leave me the hell alone, so finally I said yes._

_I know what you'd say if you were here, Sev. "Never trust Lucius. He's a viper waiting to strike." I know._

_But I figure, I'll go to one damn meeting, and if I don't like it, I'll leave._

_But I was wondering, would you like to spend a week at Grimmauld Place with me? Cindy doesn't live near me, so all we're doing is exchanging letters, and I'm kind of sick of my own company._

_So just thought I'd ask, since I know you don't like spending all that much time at home with your dad and all. Send me an owl if you want to come, I'll tell Father and he can Apparate you. Or you could take the Knight Bus, though Mother says that's only if you're desperate._

_How are things between you and Lily Evans? Have you gone out yet? Did her father allow you to date her? Hope everything is going well._

_I'll see you next week, or next term. Either way, have a good holiday, mate!_

_Reg_

Severus set the letter down and started to make himself a cup of tea, for he had forgotten to close the window and the kitchen was now a bit chilly. He waved a hand and the window shut itself, but no sooner had he done that then he heard a strident pounding at the front door of the row house.

"Goddammit! Where the bloody hell are my keys?" a slurred familiar voice cried.

Severus groaned. "What the hell is _he_ doing home at this time of the night?"

Then he looked at the clock on the wall, it was hanging a bit crookedly, and saw to his astonishment it was nearly eleven o'clock, he hadn't realized he had been reading so long.

Again came the sharp pounding and the irascible voice of Tobias growled, "Blast it and damn it! Eileen! Severus! Come and open the bloody door!"

Severus was tempted to just walk away and go upstairs, but he knew that if Tobias ended up finding his keys and opening the door himself, only to discover Severus had been home, he would be in huge trouble. Sighing, he picked up the letter and walked towards the door, unlocking it just as Tobias lifted his hand to slam it again.

The door flew backwards, nearly knocking Severus sprawling.

"What the hell took you so long, damn it?"

"I was upstairs," Severus answered quietly.

Tobias walked in, his eyes bloodshot, reeking of smoke and beer, his work shirt stained with what appeared to be mustard. The Bull usually served pretzels and mustard along with a pint. He glowered at his son, who backed away quickly.

Then he spied the parchment in his son's hand. "What's that? A love letter from your girlfriend next door?"

"No, sir. Just from a friend."

Tobias's eyes narrowed. "What friend? From that queer school? I thought I told you, boy, you're not allowed to get any mail from there."

Severus cursed his slip of the tongue. He knew better to admit that he got mail by owl post, Tobias hated to be reminded that such things existed. "Sir, it's only one letter . . ." he began.

Tobias lunged, grabbing for the letter, and Severus jerked away, yelling, "No! That's mine!"

"Give it here! I told you once before what would happen if you told anyone from that damn school where you lived," Tobias snarled. He grabbed Severus's wrist and wrenched the letter from him, then marched over to the fireplace, lit a match and burned the letter to ash.

Severus watched with bleak bitter eyes. At that moment, he hated his father more than ever, for stealing away every little thing that made him the least bit happy. Except Lily. She alone Tobias could not touch. He started to leave, intending to go upstairs and hibernate in his room, away from his father's temper, but Tobias was not minded to let his son go so easily.

"Get over here, you lying sly bugger! You need a good lesson in manners, Severus Snape."

Severus went pale. He knew what those words meant. "No. It was just a letter."

Tobias sneered. Then he moved, lunging at his son. "When I tell you to come here, you do it, boy!"

Severus flung an arm over his face, knowing it was useless, but trying anyway to mitigate some of the punishment.

Tobias's hand cracked into the side of his head, and he gasped as sharp pain flared through him.

Frightened as he was, Severus also felt angry, for the mere existence of a letter was no reason for Tobias to go off the deep end. A small voice in the back of his head taunted bitterly, _You can stand up to bully like Kent and punch him out, yet you can't stand up to your own father, another drunken bum?_ Shame swirled within him then, because he knew that he ought to do so, but he was terrified, this was no mere boy, but the demon of his childhood, and he knew defiance would only bring him more pain.

Even so, he could not quite master his anger, and it caused him to act rashly and blurt out, "Why can't you just leave me the hell alone? Why?"

It was the absolute wrong thing to say, he knew it before the words left his mouth.

The next thing he felt was Tobias's fist, slamming him into the wall.

"I'll teach you to talk like that to me, you little bastard! You forget who's in charge here, you spiteful ungrateful brat!"

Severus tasted blood in his mouth, and his head throbbed from where it had cracked into the wall. He swallowed hard and slumped down onto the floor. _Merlin help me! But I am so dead._

His father grabbed him by the hair, yanking him up from the ground, and then cracking him across the face again.

By then Severus's face hurt so much that he hardly knew which was up or down, and he didn't bother struggling when his father removed his belt.

Instead he made himself slip away, deep into the recesses of his mind, where he could no longer feel the pain of his battered face nor the whipping that followed.

Eileen arrived home at midnight to discover her husband snoring upon the couch, an empty bottle of Scotch tipped over on its side next to the couch. She cast him a disgusted glance and moved to right the lamp that had been knocked over on the end table.

It was then she came across the still form of her son, lying bloodied and battered upon the floor.

"Dear sweet Merlin! Severus!"


	10. For Your Own Good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eileen settles with Tobias and Severus takes Reg up on his offer to stay at Grimmauld Place

Eileen managed to levitate her son wandlessly up the stairs and into his bedroom, sickened and horrified that he had been the victim yet again of one of Tobias's drunken rages. Normally it was she who bore the brunt of those, but tonight her poor son had reaped the whirlwind and Eileen felt a part of her rise up and howl _That's it! No more of this will I tolerate! I am tired of being hurt and having my son hurt by this drunken Muggle bully._

After making sure Severus was still breathing and gently cleaning the blood off his face with a warm wet cloth, the witch headed downstairs to call the police station and have Tobias arrested for domestic abuse and assault. It was something she wished she had had the courage to do years ago, but she had been a foolish romantic and had hoped that Tobias would change, and quit drinking and come to love Severus as his intelligent and talented son. And love her the way he used to. But it had never happened. And now she was certain it never would. Tobias had broken her wand in a fit of anger, and Eileen couldn't afford to have it repaired, so she now relied mostly on wandless spells.

The police arrived a few minutes later and after seeing poor Severus, promptly cuffed and arrested the very inebriated Tobias. Tobias was still out of it, for the most part, the police had to haul him off the couch bodily and manhandle him into the patrol car.

"Ma'am, you might want to take your son to the hospital to get looked at," suggested an officer. "He might have a concussion, among other things. Would you like me to call an ambulance?"

"No, I'll bring him myself, it's no trouble," Eileen said swiftly. She knew that her potions would do a better job than any Muggle hospital would, and it was bad enough everyone would know her husband had been arrested on charges of domestic violence, they didn't need to know details of what he had done to her poor son as well.

Once the police were gone, Eileen headed upstairs to tend to her son, an odd feeling of relief coming over her. By filing charges, she knew she had started something that could end in either joy or disaster, but either way, she knew it was for her and Severus's own good.

Severus woke to a cool cloth upon his battered face and knew his mother had come home. Either that or he was dreaming and he wanted to never wake up. But no, he recognized the smell of water with crushed arnica on the cloth, and he cautiously opened first one eye and then the other.

His head still hurt, but not with that first fearsome throbbing, now it was bearable. He wondered if he had a bald spot where Tobias had yanked him up by his hair, it had felt as though the older man were about to pull out his hair by the roots. He discovered he was in his room, lying on his side, his mother would know better than to have him lie on his back, for such would only aggravate the welts left from this latest confrontation. Severus flinched as he recalled the sharp sting, though he had gone away inside his head for the most part, and hadn't really felt the punishment afterwards. But he was feeling it plenty now.

"Sev, are you awake, honey?" Eileen asked softly, her hand stroking his hair back from his head. "How do you feel?"

 _How do you think I feel?_ He wanted to snap at her, but refrained from doing so. His mother meant well, but she tended to overstate the obvious, something that kind of annoyed Severus sometimes, especially when he was hurting. But all he said was, "Not too good, Mum," which was the understatement of the day.

"Oh, Sev," she murmured, and in her tone were years of regret and guilt. "I'm sorry I wasn't there to . . .to try and talk to him so he didn't do this."

Severus shifted and hissed as the movement made his tender skin start burning. "Wouldn't have made much difference if you were, he'd just have gone for you first."

"What happened?"

"I got a letter from Regulus Black and he saw it."

"A letter? He did _this_ to you over a letter?" she repeated angrily. "Sodding damn bastard! I'm glad I had him arrested. Glad!" Then she started to cry softly.

"Arrested?" Severus tried to prop himself up, his mouth falling open. He hated it when his mother cried, especially since he knew she was crying, not for herself, but for him. "As in you called the police?"

"Yes. I always . . .I never wanted . . .anyone to know . . .I hoped that he would change like he promised but . . .tonight proved that he hasn't even tried. And I . . . can't let him hurt you that way again, Sev." She shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry . . .I should have done it long ago. I'm a terrible mother."

"No!" he objected, wincing as he attempted to sit up. "You're not. He's just an arsehole. Nobody's perfect, Mum."

She gave him a reluctant half-smile. Then she handed him a short vial. "Drink that, please. It's a pain reliever."

"Thanks." He quickly gulped it down.

Immediately, the pain in his head and some of the pain in his thighs and backside dulled. He sucked in a breath in relief.

Then Eileen vanished his jeans and underpants, rolling him onto his stomach. She hissed in sympathy as she saw the awful marks upon her son's pale skin.

Severus buried his face in the pillow, clenching his jaw.

Eileen carefully washed and rubbed salve all over, apologizing for any additional pain she caused him, though Severus made no sound except a faint whimper every now and then.

But soon her potions had numbed his backside and thighs and he gasped sharply, a few tears dampening the pillow in relief.

"Better, Sev?"

"Much."

"Try and sleep a little, son." She gave him a Headache Remedy as well, pulling the light sheet over him.

"How long will they hold him for, Mum?"

"For as long as possible, son." Eileen answered. "I need to go down to the station and sign some forms, all right? I should be back in a few minutes." She stroked his hair and then departed after urging him to sleep again.

He sank into a twilight realm, drifting upon a cloud, gloriously numb and exhausted.

When he woke again, the sun was up and Eileen and Lily were sitting by his bed, looking at him with a mixture of understanding, guilt, and sorrow. He froze when his eyes met Lily's emerald ones. He longed to close his own and pretend he was asleep, he was so upset and embarrassed that she, of all people, had to see him thus.

"Lily? What are you doing here?" he made himself ask, because he had to say something, for he couldn't bear the way she was looking at him, like a badly wounded animal that she was going to start weeping over any second.

"I saw . . .last night, I saw the police pull up into the drive here and I . . .I just wanted to come and make sure everything was all right." She bit her lip hard. "I had a funny feeling last night that you were . . .that something was wrong . . .I dreamed that a shadow came for you and swallowed you . . ."

He grimaced. "That's one way to put it, I guess."

"Your mother told me that your dad was arrested."

"Yes. That's the only good thing that happened last night, besides Reg's letter."

"You got a letter from Reg?" Lily repeated. "What did he say?"

Severus told her. "He wants me to come and stay there for a week or so, but I wasn't sure if I should . . .I mean, with my job and all . . .and you . . ."

"Severus, you never told me the Blacks invited you to stay there," Eileen spoke up. "I think you should take Regulus up on his offer, son. I'm not certain how long they will hold your father and I want you to be far away from here if he does get released. It's not safe for you here."

"But Mum, I can't just leave. What about my job? We'll need the money now that _he's_ gone. " Which was true, though he dreaded hearing the whispers and rumors that were sure to follow in the aftermath of this incident. He knew they would be talking about it and giving him pitying looks. "And I don't want to leave Lily either," he mumbled, half to himself.

But Lily had extremely sharp hearing, and she caught the softly spoken sentence. She reached out and captured his hand. "Sev, please. Your mum is right, you shouldn't worry about anything but being safe. My dad will understand."

His cheekbones flushed a dull red. "That's not the point, Lily. I don't need to run away any longer. I'm not a coward, damn it!"

"I never said you were," Lily returned. "And I'll miss you awfully, but missing you is better than waking up one day and finding you dead from whatever he did to you. I could never live with myself then."

Still he hesitated, worrying his lower lip.

Then Eileen spoke up briskly, "Severus, it's for your own good. Go to the Blacks for the rest of the summer. I'll speak with Regulus's parents and arrange everything. Right now, the best thing for you to do is to go to London to Grimmauld Place."

"And what about you? I'm just going to leave you here, Mum, waiting till the bastard gets out on parole, huh?"

Eileen laid a hand on his shoulder, knowing his growling tone hid a vast concern for her. "I will make sure that he doesn't harm me this time."

"Do you promise?"

"On my witch's honor." Then she hugged him.

Severus heaved a sigh. "All right. I'll tell Reg I'm coming. And later on this afternoon I'll have a talk with your dad, Lily, so he doesn't think I ran away or something."

Lily smiled at him, and her smile made some of the wounds in his soul begin to scab over a little. "He would never think that about you, Sev. Do you need anything? Like maybe some water or something to eat?"

He paused before replying, for he really wanted to put on some clothes and go sit with her on her back porch, but he knew that even numbed, his injured behind wouldn't permit it, and so he settled for requesting a cool glass of water.

Lily went immediately to fetch some, leaving him alone with his mother.

He frowned at her and said irritably, "Mum did you have to tell her about it?"

"Severus, I told her hardly anything. She came over here knowing something was wrong and I barely needed to say a word. She has the Sight and when you have that gift sometimes you know things without being told."

He subsided then, and Eileen gently applied more salve to him and spelled a soft pair of pajama pants on him, so that when Lily returned a few moments later, Severus was able to sit up and spend the better part of two hours talking to her about how much he would miss going for walks together, or to the movies, and promising to write whenever possible.

"It's not forever, Sev. Just for a few weeks and then we'll be back in school and see each other all the time," she whispered, taking his face in her hands and kissing him ardently.

"I know. But it will _seem_ like forever," he sighed, kissing her back. The summer would seem endless without Lily there, he thought, biting back a groan. Damn Tobias for ruining everything!

"Oh, I don't think Reg will let you be bored," she laughed, her green eyes dancing.

"I suppose not," he agreed reluctantly, never knowing how true her statement would be.


	11. At Grimmauld Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus goes to Grimmauld Place for the rest of the summer

"Well, here we are, 12 Grimmauld Place. Home sweet home," Regulus announced as Severus and he popped into view along with Orion Black via Sidelong Apparition. "Unless you're Sirius, that is."

"Regulus!" Orion reproved quietly.

Reg blushed a little. "C'mon, Dad, you know that's true. Siri much prefers the Potter estate to here."

"That may be, son, but you promised me you would try and get along with your brother this summer," Orion reminded his youngest. The elder Black was quite tall and lanky, with short hair and bright hazel eyes. He was handsome like Sirius, but unlike his older son, did not have the arrogant manner, at least not that Severus could tell.

"I was trying, Dad!" Reg objected. "It's not my fault he got into another row with Mother and ran off to stay with James again. I didn't even know he had left until the next morning. It's not like he'd ever tell me where he was going."

"Sirius isn't here?" Severus queried with relief. He had been afraid he would have to dodge his nemesis all the rest of the summer.

"No, Sev. Don't you remember? That's why I wanted you to come stay here," Regulus reminded him, dashing his hair out of his eyes. "And I'm glad you can stay for longer than a week." He grinned happily at his friend.

Severus returned the smile. "Me too." _Although I already miss Lily, and wish she were here too._

"Why don't you show Severus where he'll be staying, Reg?" Orion suggested. "You can unpack, wash up, and then join us for tea in the drawing room."

"Yes, sir," Severus said automatically.

Orion chuckled. "You can call me Orion, Severus. Or Mr. Black, if you must be formal, though normally I'm not one for formality here in my home. I haven't been called sir by anyone since I used to teach at the Auror Academy years ago, before Reg was born."

"Dad was a great Defense teacher there," Reg declared proudly. "He knows all the best wards and protection charms."

"You do?" Severus looked up at the other man. "Would . . .that is . . .I'd be pleased if you would teach me, Mr. Black. If it's not too much trouble, that is?"

Orion threw back his head and laughed. "Ah, Severus, you're something else. I thought Reg here was the only kid who begged to study more about magic over the summer holidays. Guess I was wrong. All right, let me look at my schedule and when I have an hour or two free, I'll tutor you and Reg some. Have you your wand?"

"Yes, sir. I mean, Mr. Black." Severus patted his pocket.

"Good. Just remember, you're not allowed to use it unless I or another adult wizard is with you." Orion ordered sternly.

"Black house rules," Regulus told his friend. "And if you break them, Dad will confiscate your wand and ground your arse."

"I understand," Severus nodded rapidly.

"I don't have many ironclad rules here, Mr. Snape, but that is one of them, and since you will be living here till the end of the summer, I will expect you to abide by it."

"I will," agreed Severus.

"Good, because if you break it, I shall punish you as I would my sons." Orion then waved him and Reg off towards the stairs. "But I trust I won't have to. My wife, Walburga, will go over the rest of the rules after tea, I'd expect. They're not many. We want you to have a pleasant summer here with Reg. Welcome to Grimmauld Place, Severus."

"Thank you, sir."

"Orion. Go on, let Regulus show you around." He left his son and the skinny dark-haired boy to stride down the lefthand side of the hall and into his study.

"C'mon, Sev. Mother's not back from her Witches Association Club yet, so I'll have time to show you around and stuff before we have to go and have tea with them." Regulus beckoned his friend up the stairs, which were carpeted in a deep blue and the stairs were lined with a few photos of the Black ancestors, all of which gazed curiously at Severus as he followed behind Regulus, who bounded up the stairs like an antelope, causing some of the portraits to cluck in disapproval.

At the top of the stairs was a large living room area with comfortable suede couches, a chaise lounge, and a large marble fireplace with a roaring fire dancing in the grate. On the mantle was a fine cherry mantle clock and several small crystal sculptures of a griffin, a serpent, a unicorn, and a snarling wolf. Above the fireplace was a large portrait of a stern looking man dressed in green Slytherin robes carrying an emerald topped scepter.

"That's my great-grandfather, Cygnus Black. He's the son of Phineas Nigellus Black who was Headmaster of Hogwarts," Regulus explained. "Hey Great-Grandsire, meet my friend, Severus Snape."

The portrait blinked and gave a nod to Severus, saying in a deep voice, "It is my pleasure to meet you, Severus. I trust you are a Slytherin as well, like my scamp of a great-grandson?"

"Yes, sir."

"Marvelous!" declared the portrait, beaming. "Run along then, lads, and try not to get into mischief. It irks my granddaughter so." Then he winked at Regulus.

Severus glanced around at the living area, noting the furniture was of heavy cherry, and illuminated by Lumos-lit lights. A large carpet of green and beige in an Indian inlaid pattern was upon the floor, Severus could tell by a single glance that it was of top quality, but before he could see more, Regulus was dragging him through an alcove to the right and down a hallway with brass wall sconces papered in silver and emerald stripes.

"Down here's our bedrooms and the bathroom, and the game room. Well, it's kind of like a combo library and game room. But the books are mostly mine, if you haven't guessed. My room is next to yours."

The guest bedroom that Reg showed Severus was twice the size of his piddling little room at Spinner's End. It was done in soft cream with a forest green carpet and a four poster bed with matching hangings that could have slept three comfortably. The mattress was about a foot high and the pillows were huge plump things. Also in the room was a chestnut highboy, a nightstand, desk, and a small cream and green striped lounge chair.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. " _This_ is the guest room?"

"Yeah, it's pretty nice." Regulus said. Then he called, "Kreacher! Bring Severus's trunk up here!"

A skinny house elf with a squint popped into the room. "As you will, Master Regulus!"

Then he vanished and the next minute Severus's trunk popped into the room. Kreacher blinked in a moment later. "Will Master Regulus require anything else?"

"No, Kreacher, that'll be all for now, thank you."

Kreacher bowed and blinked away.

Regulus turned to his friend. "You can unpack later. Come and see my room."

Regulus' room was just as opulent as the guest room, done in midnight blue and gold, though his walls were covered in posters of Quidditch players and a framed house crest and shots of unusual magical beasts, like quetzalcoatls, dragons, foo dogs, ashwinders, and rocs. A model of a firebird hung from the ceiling and shot illusionary flames every five minutes into the air.

Regulus waved a hand at his own chaise. "Have a seat, Sev. We can go flying after tea if you'd like. So . . .tell me how are things with Lily? Have you gone out more than once?"

Severus sighed with relief. He had been afraid Regulus was going to ask about why his mother was allowing him to stay for the rest of the summer. But he was always willing to talk about Lily. "Yes, I took her for ice cream and to the movies," Severus said. At Reg's puzzled look, he tried to explain the cinema, but wasn't sure his friend actually understood it, but it didn't matter. He spent a blissful hour talking about how wonderful it was for Lily to go out with him and how she had actually seemed to enjoy herself.

"Well, of course she did, Sev. You know how to show a girl a good time and all, why wouldn't she like being with you? You . . .love her right?"

Severus gave a quick nod, then blushed ferociously.

Regulus grinned. "Good. I'd say that she loves you too. You make a good pair-brains, charms, potions and guts. Much better than that snotrag Potter would have."

"That I will agree on." Severus said softly. "How about you, Reg? Seen any more of Cindy since the Malfoys' ball?"

"No," Regulus sighed. "She hasn't written to me either. Maybe she's changed her mind."

"Have you written to her?"

Reg bit his lip, looking suddenly uncertain. "No."

"Maybe you should."

"Maybe." Reg conceded. Before he could say anything else Kreacher appeared in the room and said it was time for tea.

Regulus rolled his eyes. "Very well, we're coming." He lowered his voice and whispered softly, "Don't let my mother intimidate you, Sev. She's not a strict as she likes to think she is. If she was, Sirius would have been dead five years ago. Oh, and she doesn't know you're not a pureblood, I didn't . . .ah. . .want to get into that with her." Regulus said awkwardly.

"Would she throw me out if she knew?" Severus said uneasily.

"Huh? Oh, no, of course not! She's not that bad, but she's just . . .got a thing against those of mixed blood. I know it's stupid, but she's old-fashioned and well. . .I thought it was best if we just let her assume you were a pureblood."

Severus nodded. He would pretend to be Merlin himself so long as it got him away from Tobias. Mrs. Black's attitude didn't surprise him, many purebloods felt that way, the prejudice had been around for centuries. Severus hated it, but was willing to tolerate it for the sake of survival.

Regulus led him downstairs and to the right, into a pretty violet papered drawing room with antique furniture and a large potted fern. Both of Regulus's parents were seated upon the Victorian plush sofa, where an expensive silver tea service was set as well as an assortment of finger sandwiches, pastries, and soup was set out, along with tall glasses of water.

Walburga Black was seated to the right of her husband, looking cool and elegant in a crimson and black high collared dress. Her dark hair was upswept into a severe style a decorated with a single diamond stag hairpin. The same motif was represented on the collar of her dress in a cameo brooch. She eyed Severus from stern dark eyes, eyes that were the same dark brown as that of her eldest son.

"Please, have a seat, Severus, is it?" she beckoned him to one of the hardbacked Victorian brocade chairs placed at either end of the table. "Welcome to my home."

"Thank you, my lady," Severus said respectfully, and promptly sat down where she indicated. He took the linen napkin laid at his place and opened it and placed it in his lap. He was extremely nervous at meeting the dragoness of Grimmauld Place, but determined not to show it one iota.

"I hope you have found your room satisfactory?" Walburga inquired, her tone indicating that there was no reason why he should not.

"Yes, I've never seen any room as fine, my lady." Severus replied.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Reg snickering into his napkin at the overly formal way Severus was addressing his mother. But Severus sensed that if he were to start off on the right foot with Mrs. Black, he had better show her the utmost respect, and so he addressed her accordingly.

"I would hope not. My great-grandmother brought that furniture over from France, she went to school at Beauxbatons, and found an old wizard who was having an estate sale-those pieces are over three centuries old."

Severus managed to look suitably impressed, and Walburga continued, "Your mother wrote to me and has asked me to allow you to stay and keep Regulus company till the end of the summer and I have agreed, seeing as she was once a fellow Housemate of mine, though a few years my junior. Nevertheless, a favor to a Slytherin is no favor at all, as they say. You are the first boy to stay this long at Grimmauld Place since that troublemaking James Potter did four years ago." Her mouth tightened in disgust. "That was one mistake I shall never repeat. That boy was worse than a four-year-old, as mischievous as a pack of pixies, and rude and disrespectful, encouraging my sons to all sorts of crude behavior." She leveled a stern glare at Severus. "I trust, Mr. Snape, that you shall behave with proper decorum and respect while you are here? Otherwise I can and will send you right back from whence you came."

"I understand, my lady. I won't be any trouble," Severus promised, thinking how typical it was for Potter to misbehave even outside of school.

"Severus is a prefect at school, Mum," Regulus broke in. "He makes the rest of us toe the line, he won't be breaking rules, right, Sev?"

Severus nodded, and Walburga looked relieved and slightly pleased. "A prefect, you say? Well, that's quite an achievement. Your mother and father must be proud of you. I hope that Regulus will achieve prefect status when he is a fifth year." She shot a pointed look at her son. "Sirius, I fear, is a lost cause. He cares more for causing trouble and following that detestable Potter boy than he does for academics, more's the pity."

"Sirius has other talents, Walburga," Orion said quietly.

"I wish I knew what they were," sniffed his wife. "How did you score on your OWLS, boy?"

"I received all Outstandings, my lady."

Walburga's eyebrows shot up. "Clearly you are a scholar, Mr. Snape. Very impressive." She shook her head and muttered something to her husband that sounded like, "Now why couldn't Sirius be like that?"

Severus fought to keep from smiling. For once it was nice to get praise from an adult besides Eileen, and the fact that the adult was Sirius's own mother was deliciously ironic.

"What do you consider your best subject?" Walburga continued.

"Potions, but I'm also good at Defense, my lady."

"Very good. I myself was good at Charms and Transfiguration." Walburga said proudly.

"And I was good at Defense," Orion said. "Let the boys eat before you question Severus further, dear. I'm sure he's starving."

"All right, Orion. Do have some tea," Walburga ordered, and began pouring herself another cup of Earl Grey.

Severus was hungry, but he could barely bring himself to swallow a bite with Walburga keeping an eagle eye on him. He felt like a monkey in a cage, and prayed he recalled the manners Eileen had taught him while dining out, it had been so long since he had been in polite society. He nibbled a scone and sipped some Chai tea, wishing he had a Calming Draught.

Trying to put the boy at ease, Orion asked, "Do you follow Quidditch, Severus?"

"I . . .well, not recently, sir. Too busy studying," he said quickly.

"Ah, well, I love flying, I was a fair Chaser in my youth," Orion said, and began reminiscing about his days as a Slytherin Chaser.

Severus was no great fan of the sport, but he knew enough from hanging about Regulus to keep up a conversation, and Orion's easygoing personality soon had him relaxed enough to eat some sandwiches and drink more than a single cup of tea.

Regulus joined in, telling his father about his own mishaps as a Seeker, poking fun at himself, and eating and drinking like a famished shipwreck survivor.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Walburga spelled out the rules of the Black household to Severus. "Orion has informed that he has already told you about using wands over the summer. The same goes for brewing potions. We have a small potions lab in the basement, you may use it as necessary, though you must let one of us know beforehand. I do not allow my sons to fly at night, or leave without telling me or Orion or Kreacher where they are going. Flying here must be done carefully, since we are among Muggles and must take care not to be seen. Regulus will show you the places you can fly. You will have no set bedtime, as you are old enough to decide when you need to sleep. However, any rowdiness in the wee hours of the morning will not be tolerated and if you wake us up with your antics, rest assured I shall assign you a bedtime like I would a toddler, am I clear?"

Severus assured her he would behave again and Walburga seemed satisfied. "I trust you both are old enough to occupy yourselves without my assistance, this is your first visit to London, correct?"

"Yes, my lady."

"Well, perhaps Regulus can show you about a bit. Visit Buckingham Palace and whatnot." She rang a small bell on the table and Kreacher appeared. "Clear this away and bring me a glass of sherry and Orion port, Kreacher."

"Yes, Mistress. Kreacher hears and obeys." He clapped his hands and the tea things were banished and a small glass of sherry and port appeared in their place. Then Kreacher bowed and vanished.

Walburga reached for her glass and said languidly, "All right, boys, run along and amuse yourselves. Supper is at seven, so be prompt."

Regulus and Severus departed quickly, and as soon as they were beyond the drawing room door, Regulus turned and clapped Sev on the shoulder. "Good work, Sev! You survived Mum's inspection. Now that's over with, let's get our brooms and go flying."

"All right," Severus agreed, heaving a sigh of relief. Walburga was nearly as bad as Tobias with her dissecting glares. With luck, he would manage to avoid the stern matron as much as possible, lest she attempt to pry into his background any further.

The next few days proved to be quite fun for Severus and Regulus. They spent some of the morning after breakfast flying in Hyde Park under Notice Me Not Charms, flying was safe in the early morning, evening, and at dusk. Severus was a decent flyer, though not as good as Reg, who was excellent due to his Quidditch practices and his natural reflexes.

They played tag through the treetops and chased a Snitch and Regulus taught Severus a few maneuvers on a broom that he never knew.

Some days they spent practicing potions that might have been on the syllabus for next year, Regulus was also very good at them and far more advanced than the typical fourth-going-into-fifth-year student. Occasionally, Walburga would come and observe them or Orion, though most times the adults tended to leave them be once they saw that both boys were not going to get up to any tomfoolery, and all they had to do was tell Kreacher they were brewing and to inform either of the elder wizards.

Other times, Reg took Severus out and they explored Muggle London, going on small day trips to see the various sights and museums. Severus drank it all in and wrote to Lily about his days and nights at Grimmauld Place. He managed to write a letter to her at least once a week and Reg teased him about absence making the heart grow fonder.

Severus promptly threw one of his pillows at the smirking younger wizard, and a knockdown dragout pillow fight ensued, leaving both of them breathless, laughing, and covered in griffin feathers.

Severus quickly Banished them and mended the pillow before Kreacher discovered it and told Reg to write to Cindy.

"You really think I should?"

"If you want to go out with her, yes."

"All right." He snitched a piece of parchment and a quill from Severus's desk and leaned on the opposite side and began to write rapidly.

Lily's letters were the high point of Severus's week, usually. She always wrote back to him, though she claimed her summer was boring and ordinary compared to his.

_Dear Sev,_

_Sounds like you're having a great time with Reg over there. I'm glad, you both deserve it. Over here, it's the same old thing, work at the cinema, sometimes going out shopping with Mum and Tuney. Don't know if you heard from your mum yet, but Dad agreed to press charges against your dad for suspected child abuse and that means his jail time will be extended, maybe even to the end of the summer, so you won't have to worry about your mum being alone with him. That's a good thing, right?_

_I've been trying to brew Felix Felicis but haven't had much luck so far. I sure wish you were here to help me, Sev. I miss you. I know I'll be seeing you soon when we go to Diagon Alley for school supplies, but it feels like forever, know what I mean?_

_I remain, forever and always,_

_Your beloved oracle,_

_Lily_

_PS: Miss you! XOXOXO_

Severus was astonished and delighted after he read that letter, so much so that he actually blurted out, "Yes! The bastard can rot in jail for all I care!" while Regulus was sprawled on the sofa in the game room, reading through a Quidditch journal.

"Who can rot in jail?" Reg asked curiously, laying the magazine down.

"My father," Severus answered, then froze.

"What? Hold it. Your dad's in jail and you're _happy_ about it? Why?"

"Because he's a nasty rotten bugger and I hate him," Severus admitted shortly.

Reg's eyes narrowed. He knew that Severus didn't get along with his father, because Tobias disliked magic, but he had never known the enmity ran so deep between them. "Okay. Care to tell me what the hell happened before you came here, Sev? Does it have to do with him?"

"Yes." Severus remained silent for a long moment, trying to decide what he should tell Regulus. He had never really discussed his childhood with his friend, he had always been embarrassed and ashamed at how he lived and how he allowed Tobias to bully and hurt him.

"Okay. You don't have to say anything else, Sev," Regulus said kindly, not wanting to pry, though he was clever enough to form his own conclusions.

"I know, but . . .maybe it's time you knew a few things," Severus said, very quietly. Then, not looking directly at Regulus, he told his friend what had happened at the beginning of the summer and that it was something that happened more than once.

Regulus was angry and a little shocked, and said heatedly, "Well, I'm glad he's in jail too, otherwise I'd have to break every rule my mother ever set for me and go and hex the bastard till he begged for mercy."

Severus managed a small smile. "Thanks, Reg."

"Don't mention it. What are friends for?"

And Sev smiled quietly and counted himself lucky to have a friend like Regulus.

Orion kept his promise to tutor both Severus and Regulus in Defense wards and shielding, showing them the correct way to ward a room from another wizard trying to get in using high level unlocking spells. He also showed them how to set multiple layers of wards, some to warn that an unauthorized person was trying to gain entry to your room or lab or whatever and also illusion charms that would hid the entrance from prying eyes unless you had a password. He taught them wards to detect those who meant harm to you and those to detect dark magic.

"You can cast these same wards on other things too, like trunks and desks and things," Orion told them. "You can set a ward at different power levels, to shock or sting or even to knock someone out. It depends on what you want guarded or how much something means to you. I use some of these same wards upon my house."

"Yeah, thanks to Dad, our house is warded almost as good as Gringotts," declared Regulus with a proud tilt to his head.

Orion chuckled and ruffled Reg's hair. "I wouldn't go that far, Reg. But I come close. Very close. Now then, shall we resume where we left off? Wands at the ready, gentlemen. And . . .on three . . ."

He also taught them personal Shielding Charms and how to layer them against a magical assault. Little did any of them know how useful that would be later on. But looking back years later, Severus had reason to be very grateful to Orion Black for teaching him everything he knew about wards and shield charms.

It was after one such lesson that Regulus received an owl from Lucius.

_Regulus,_

_I have a meeting of the club we discussed last time at the party scheduled for tonight. Meet me at my house at eight o'clock sharp. We'll fly to the rendezvous point. Wear a black cloak._

_Lucius_

"Are you going to go?" Severus asked. For some reason, Lucius's request, more like an order, really, disturbed him. He couldn't put his finger on why, but there was something not quite right about Lucius's little club as he called it.

"Yes. I'll go to one meeting, just to get him off my back. How bad could it be? If I don't like it, I'll tell him I'm out and that'll be that." Regulus shrugged. "It's probably just some group of stupid purebloods hanging around and drinking and making stupid jokes about Muggleborns and stuff like that."

Severus frowned. "Maybe. Just be careful, Reg. Don't believe everything Lucius says, he lies through his teeth, and does it with a smile. And don't make promises you can't keep."

"Okay, okay. Calm down, worrywart. It's not like I'm pledging my life to the devil or something. This is just some stupid rich boys club and I only agreed to go to a meeting so Lucius would quit nagging me. I'll be fine, Sev."

Severus gave his friend a dark look, but said nothing further. Regulus was determined to attend and Severus knew once a Black had made up his mind, it was like trying to move a mountain with your bare hands to get him to change it.

"When do you think you'll be back?"

"Don't know. Hopefully not too late. I don't want to spend the night at Malfoy Manor. I much prefer to sleep in my own bed." Regulus said. "I'll tell Mother I'm going to visit with Lucius for a bit. Don't stay up waiting for me, Sev."

Severus rolled his eyes. "I'm not your father, Black."

"Thank Merlin for that!" Reg laughed. He hoped this meeting of Lucius's wasn't a waste of his time, he would far rather be reading or playing chess with Severus. Then he rose from his bed and went to wash up for supper and inform his parents of his plans for the evening.

**A/N:**

**What did you think of Reg's parents? And Grimmauld Place?**

**Next: Regulus discovers that Lucius' little club is more than he bargained for. Can Severus help him get out of it before it's too late?**


	12. A Dreadful Pact

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Regulus tells SEverus of a dreadful pact he was forced to make

Dinner at the Black house was the usual quiet affair, with neither adult speaking loudly to each other and both boys were too concerned with eating to talk much. They usually had four course meals, consisting of a soup course, salad course, main course, and dessert. Severus had long ago memorized the way to choose the correct cutlery for the meal-Reg had told him to just start from the outside and move inward-and he had no fear he would mess up and cause Walburga to sneer at him.

Walburga was polite to him and not at all snippy or condescending as he had expected her to be based upon Sirius's complaints, but Sev wondered if that would change if she ever knew the truth about his background. He was just glad Sirius would be gone for the whole summer, for he could see the other boy gleefully informing his mother that Reg's new friend was a half-blood with a drunken Muggle father.

Tonight's soup was a creamy lobster chowder, the lobster imported from Maine, it was delicious. The salad was mixed greens with a sprinkling of bleu cheese and almonds in a raspberry vinaigrette dressing and was tangy and Severus enjoyed it immensely. He liked fresh salad and didn't always get it at home. The main course was scallops in white wine over noodles, fresh rolls, and a side of spinach with roasted garlic. For dessert there was a fresh lemon and orange sherbet with whipped cream.

Severus had to admit that the Blacks ate gourmet food like rich toffs and he had never eaten such wonderful food until that summer. He felt a pang of envy for Regulus and Sirius, who ate like kings every day and night and never had to worry about missing a meal because Mum had to pay the electric bill, or the utility bill, or something like that. Severus savored every bite of each meal and considered himself in paradise.

"I'm going to Floo over to the Malfoys tonight, Mother," Regulus informed his mother after finishing off his sherbet. "Lucius invited me to that youth club of his and I guess I ought to be polite and attend the first meeting."

"Very true, Regulus," Walburga said in approval. "At least one of you remembers the manners I taught you. Attend the first meeting as a show of respect and then if you feel you don't wish to attend more, politely write a refusal. But I think it will do you good to get out more, Reg. Meet some more young people with good families. Who knows, you may even find a girl that catches your eye."

Severus nearly burst out laughing at Regulus's blush.

"Mum, please! I'm fourteen, not eighteen. And I think this is a boys club."

"Well, dear, that doesn't mean those boys might not have a pretty sister your age."

Reg hid his face in his dinner cloth, his ears now bright red.

"Aw, leave off, Walla. You're embarrassing the kid." Orion ordered, sounding amused.

"I'm merely _suggesting_ , Orie." Walburga shook her head. "There's no need to be embarrassed, Regulus, honestly. You certainly don't take after your father, do you? When he was your age, he chased every girl over twelve in skirts."

"Ahem . . .well . . .that was a long time ago, and I've not so much as glanced at another woman since I married you," Orion coughed.

"You'd better not, Orion Arcturus Black, not if you want to keep breathing," warned his wife, her eyes flashing. "You promised me when we were betrothed that you would remain faithful to me and Merlin help you if you break that vow."

"Peace, Walla. I have no intention ever of dishonoring you or myself that way. You are all that I need and want."

Walburga eyed her husband shrewdly, a faint smile playing about her thin lips. "Well, at least you admit it now, Orie." Then she turned back to her son, who had since stopped blushing like a crimson sunset. "What time will you return from this meeting, Reg?"

"Uh, it could be late, Mother. Like around midnight perhaps, so don't wait up for me."

"Very well. I shall have Kreacher wait for you then." She turned to Severus. "How did you find your dinner, Severus?"

"It was delicious, my lady."

"Good. I enjoy an appreciative guest. I liked the chowder best, it had just the right hint of sherry, don't you agree?"

"Oh yes, my lady." Severus nodded.

"And what will you be doing the rest of the evening, Severus?"

"Reading, most likely. My mother sent me a new potions journal and I haven't had a chance to read it," the young wizard told her, his eyes shining eagerly.

"Very good, I wish you a pleasant evening. Orion and I will be going for our evening stroll in a while, you may join us if you would like."

Severus, who was more intuitive than most boys his age, quickly declined, sensing that the two elder Blacks wished to be alone, and said he would be reading.

The clock on the mantle struck seven-thirty, and Regulus stood up and said, "Well, I'm off. I'll see you in the morning then."

He grabbed up some Floo powder and tossed it down, said, "Malfoy Manor!" and then stepped into the emerald flames and disappeared.

Walburga summoned Kreacher to take care of the dishes and then she and Orion also departed, her hand resting lightly on his arm.

Severus heaved a sigh of relief, then went upstairs to write to Lily, as he did every week, and also his mother. Once he had sent the letters off with Reg's owl, Brighteyes, he settled down with the potions journal and a glass of iced pineapple juice and began to uncover the mysteries of the August issue of elixirs and drafts.

He read for over two hours without pausing, then finished his juice and fell asleep in mid-sentence around ten-thirty. He slept deeply until around a quarter to twelve, when he was awakened by Regulus shaking his shoulder.

_That same day:_

Lily woke to the delicious aroma of bacon frying and French toast on the griddle. She yawned, stretched, and hopped out of bed, her stomach rumbling. She paused only to shove her feet into her favorite fuzzy pink slippers, use the bathroom and then she headed downstairs to the kitchen. "Yum! French toast and bacon!"

Petunia turned about from the stove where she was cooking, and said cheerily, "Morning, sleepyhead! I figured this would wake you up if anything did."

Lily rubbed her eyes. "What time is it?"

"About nine," answered Petunia, turning back to the stove and flipping the French toast. Two plates were sitting on the counter. "Dad's already gone off to work and Mum went to the supermarket. And since it's both our day off, I figured we could celebrate with French toast and bacon."

"Sounds great to me," Lily inhaled the heavenly aroma and sighed in sheer bliss. She tucked her auburn hair behind her ears and went to fetch a jug of milk from the fridge and added some Ovaltine to it for a malted chocolate milk drink. Her mother was always after her to drink more milk, that it was healthy, but Lily didn't like plain milk. Ovaltine was a great invention, as far as she was concerned. She happily gulped down a glass while waiting for the French toast and then poured herself another one.

"Here, Lil. Your breakfast, madam," Petunia announced, pretending to be some snooty maid with her nose in the air.

Lily laughed at her sister's whimsical mood and gestured. Her plate with the French toast and bacon floated over to her. Then she summoned the syrup from the pantry and Petunia's eyes goggled.

"Li-i-ly!" she enunciated, drawing out her sister's name like their mother did when she was upset with her youngest. "I thought you weren't allowed to do magic outside of school. Won't you get in trouble?"

"No, 'cause I didn't use my wand, Tuney. And it was only a little charm." Lily said, unrepentant. Petunia didn't understand how tempting it was for a young witch to use magic, how it was hard to go for months on end without it. She poured syrup on her French toast and dug in.

"This is really good, Tuney," she set down her fork a minute or two later. "Tastes just like Mum's."

"Really? Guess I got some of her cooking talent," Petunia said, sounding pleased. She carried her own plate to the table and sat opposite her sister. She cut her food into dainty pieces before tasting it. She smiled. "Wow! It really _does_ taste like Mum's."

"Told you so," Lily said, then finished her plate.

As she was washing up the dishes, she asked Petunia what plans she had for the day.

"Uh, Vern was supposed to come and pick me up, we were going to go for a picnic or something," answered her sister.

"Oh. Is he going to bring the food? Better make sure it's an extra large hamper, or else you'll end up starving."

"Lily!" Petunia shook her finger at her little sister reprovingly.

"Sorry, but it's the truth," Lily said, unrepentant.

"Mum actually made up some sandwiches and pie for me to bring and some lemonade too. I don't know what Vern is bringing, but he'll probably get his sister or mother to make up something." Petunia answered. "And what will you be doing all by your lonesome?"

Lily shrugged. "Relaxing. Maybe I'll take a bubble bath, or read, or . . .I don't know."

"Wait for a letter from sweet Sevvy?" teased her sister.

"So what if I am?"

Petunia laughed. "I wish Verno would write to me as often as Severus writes to you. Sometimes I think he forgets I exist when he leaves here."

"Too busy stuffing his face," Lily muttered under her breath. She knew she shouldn't mock her sister's boyfriend that way, but there was something about Vernon that brought out the worst in her.

She disliked the beefy teen intensely. He was loud, crude, and loved to show off his money and his fancy car and clothes. He was always looking at other people and trying to best them with money or possessions. He was shallow and Lily hated that sort of person, and he disliked her because she had magic and also disliked Severus as well. And as far as she could tell, he liked Petunia because Henry Evans was a popular man in town, well-respected, and dating his eldest daughter was a feather in his cap. She doubted whether he really loved her sister, he seemed to only love one person-himself. Lily wished Petunia would dump him and move on.

But her sister thought she was in love with the big oaf, and nothing Lily could say would change her mind.

"Well, hope you have a good time." Lily said, and she meant it.

Petunia pulled out a large wicker hamper from the top cabinet and filled it with the food Polly had made and then filled a large plastic Thermos with ice cold lemonade. That done, she went to the phone to ring Vernon and remind him about the picnic, just in case.

Meanwhile, Lily went out to pick up the paper on the drive, and stood staring at the Snape house two doors down. She knew no one was home, since Eileen worked long hours and Tobias was still serving jail time. She sighed and wished like hell that Severus could come home. She missed him something fierce, more than she thought possible. It was funny, how the absence of someone could really make you appreciate them. Severus had always been there, whenever she wanted to play, or talk, or ask questions about the wizarding world.

His absence was like missing an arm, she would turn and expect him to be standing there, hands in his pockets, his hair hanging in his eyes, peering at her through them with a hopeful look, his mouth quirked in that sweet crooked smile she loved so well.

_Oh, Sev! I couldn't wait for summer to begin and now I wish it were over and we were on the train back to school. I miss you so much! Will you send me a letter today? I hope so._

She had saved all his letters, tying them with a green ribbon and putting them in her trunk. Sometimes she would take them out and re-read them, savoring the fact that he had written to her and her hands smoothing the parchment he had touched.

She hummed to herself as she picked up the paper and went back inside.

Petunia left with Vernon in his cherry convertible at half past twelve, leaving Lily to her own devices. She decided to read some more of a novel she had purchased a week ago and then look over some of the more advanced potions in the potions book she had borrowed from Eileen. She sometimes had lessons with her on Fridays, if Eileen wasn't too tired.

She spent a pleasant three hours and when Polly arrived home, helped her put away the groceries and make a snack to tide them over till supper. Petunia came home an hour later, looking rather frazzled, and Polly asked, "How was your day with Vern, dear?"

"Okay," was all Petunia replied, placing the hamper on the table. "Thanks for cooking, Mum. I'm going up to take a shower."

Lily looked up from her book when Petunia walked past her room, sensing something was wrong. _What did that fat arsehole do now?_ She knew it had to be something he'd done, for Vernon was always criticizing Petunia, saying she wasn't as good as his sister Marge or his mother, Miranda.

When Petunia emerged from the bathroom, she still looked rather down, and Lily waited for fifteen minutes before going across the hall and knocking on her sister's door. "Tuney? Can I come in?"

"Sure."

She opened the door and saw Petunia sitting in front of her vanity, but she wasn't painting her nails or styling her hair, she was just sitting there listlessly, staring into the mirror. Lily walked over to her and peered at her worriedly. "Are you okay? You seem . . .upset. What went on at the picnic?" she asked. "Did the old walrus complain about the food?"

"No. That was the one thing he _didn't_ complain about." Petunia retorted bitterly. "He scarfed down the sandwiches and such like there was no tomorrow. After that I asked him how his job was going and he complained about his father not giving him a raise and whatnot. Then I tried to tell him about my work and all and he . . ." she paused, and bit her lip hard.

"What? What did the bounder do? You can tell me, Tuney." Lily urged.

"He . . .wasn't interested in what I had to say, so he just . . .started trying to make out with me. At first I was surprised, I mean it was the middle of the day, in public, and normally he doesn't do things like that . . .but he was . . .groping me . . . and kissing me-slobbering all over me . . ."

"Eeww!"

"And I was pushing him and telling him it was enough already . . .I didn't want to be a spectacle . . .You know how people talk around here, Lil, and the last thing I needed was for some old gossip monger to see us that way and start saying I was . . . .free with my favors or fast or something like that. Dad would have a bloody conniption." She lowered her head. "And . . .I didn't really enjoy it, Lily. It was too quick and harsh and I felt . . .used. That's not how it's supposed to be. I know it's not. I've seen you with Sev, you look like you've gone to heaven after you kiss him. " Petunia sighed, and reached up with her free hand to wipe her eyes. "So I pulled away when he loosened his hold on me and said I was going home, and he got mad and called me a little tease and I shouted back that if he were a gentleman he would ask first and then we quarreled and he brought me home."

Her sister looked so miserable that Lily couldn't resist giving her a hug. She put her slender arms about Petunia's rather bony shoulders and held her, which she hadn't done in a very long time, not since she was small. To her surprise, Petunia didn't draw away, but hugged her close.

"Tuney, maybe you shouldn't go out with him anymore," Lily whispered. "I don't think he's worth it. I think he's just using you."

"I . . .hope not. Because then I'll have wasted a whole year and a half." Her sister sniffled. "We're engaged, Lily, or we will be as soon as he buys a ring, and I thought he loved me, so why do I feel like this?"

"I don't know. I've only ever been interested in one boy, Tuney, and I know him like I know myself . . .I think. Maybe you feel like that because Vernon's not the one. Honestly, Petunia, I think you can do much better. You're smart and pretty and you have a decent job, you don't _need_ his money."

"I know, but . . .maybe I'll tell him to stop seeing me for a few months, give it a rest. Then, once the holidays come around, I'll see if I still feel the same way, and if he behaves himself then we'll go out again."

She drew away from her sister, a resolute look on her face.

"That's a good idea," Lily said, and gave Petunia a sweet smile. "Maybe some time will cool him off, the bloody baboon."

This time Petunia didn't bother reprimanding her sister for calling Vernon names. Instead she laughed along with her, and felt the knot in her chest ease.

Soon after they heard their father come home and then Polly was calling them down for dinner. Afterwards, Lily was sitting in the den, perusing a magazine when she heard a familiar tapping at the kitchen window.

With a squeal of delight, she jumped up and opened the window.

"Hello, Brighteyes! Do you have a letter for me?" she cried, petting the owl. She fed him am owl treat, which she kept in small canister by the window, and removed the letter from his ankle. He hooted thanks and then flew off silently.

She looked at the return address and squealed again. "It's from Sev! Finally!"

She tore open the envelope and read the following letter slowly:

_Dear Lily,_

_Sorry I was so slow in answering your last letter, but Reg's been keeping so busy that I barely have time to breathe. We've been traveling about London, seeing various sights, like the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, shooting the rapids on the Thames, and going to plays and once or twice to Fortescue's in Diagon Alley. We went to a Quidditch match this week and my mother sent me a new copy of Potente Potions. Once I finish it, I'll mail it to you._

_Mr. Black is teaching me some wicked new Defense spells and I can't wait to show you them. Now maybe the next time Potter tries something, I can knock that smug grin off his face._

_How have you been, my little oracle? Have any more disturbing dreams? I hope not, but if you do, you know you can share them with me. I'm counting the days till the end of the summer. Not that I'm not having a good time here with Reg, because I am, and even his mother hasn't been too overbearing, we're pretty much allowed to come and go as we please, as long as we let her know where we will be and what time we will be home. But still, I miss you and can't wait till I see you again._

_My mother tells me you're still having lessons with her, lucky you. Guess that means you'll have to show me what you've learned before school starts. I should be back a week before September, so I can go to Diagon Alley with you and get my books and potions kit and all._

_Reg's gone to some pureblood boy's association meeting tonight, hosted by the magnificent Mr. Malfoy (ha, right!), he didn't really want to go but his mum talked him into it, so I'm here alone and finally found a spare minute to write you._

_How is your job? Seen any good movies lately? I'm still trying to convince Reg to go to one. Hope you're making decent money. Tell your dad I'm available for holidays if he needs someone._

_Dream of me, Lily flower. Miss you lots._

_Always yours,_

_Sev_

Lily clutched the parchment to her chest and groaned. _Damn, Sev, but I wish you were here. I love you and I miss you so very much!_

Still holding the letter to her, Lily went and sat down in a chair, closed her eyes, and imagined that she and Severus were walking hand in hand down by the river, beneath the stars, and then he stopped and drew her close and she kissed him and felt her whole being explode with a thrilling rush of desire. " _Don't stop,"_ she whispered against his mouth. _"Never let me go, Sev."_ And he didn't.

_Grimmauld Place_

_Midnight:_

"Sev! Sev, wake up!"

Severus jerked up so fast that he nearly slammed Regulus in the nose. "Huh? What?" He blinked, startled, then frowned at his best friend. "Hell, Reg, what's the big idea? It's midnight, damn it all!"

"Sorry, Sev. But I really need to talk to you." Reg pleaded.

Severus sighed and sat up. "You know, Reg, I'd hex you if you weren't my best friend and all." He rubbed his eyes, which felt as if sand had been poured in them. "Okay, what's so damn important that it couldn't wait till morning?"

Regulus sat crosslegged on the end of Sev's bed, looking like a yoga practitioner, his dark hair rumpled and his hazel eyes frightened. "It's about that meeting I went to tonight. The Sons of the Iron Mask, they call themselves. Lucius was my sponsor, and there were about twenty-five of boys there, most of them were older than me, either fifth, sixth, or seventh year. Lucius and a couple of others were acting as sponsors to some of them. I think I was the youngest. I saw Avery, Mulciber, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle there, they were initiates too."

Suddenly Regulus shivered and mopped his brow, he was perspiring.

"Go on."

"Well, Lucius said that all of us were invited here by him, he was the Senior Initiate, and then he said we were all initiates by virtue of our pureblood status and we ought to be proud that our blood was not diluted by Muggles or half-bloods or Squibs. He talked like that for a long time, and then he said that there was a great wizard looking for a few good men, purebloods like us, to join him. Lucius told us that we would learn spells no one at Hogwarts ever knew, powerful spells, spells that the ancient wizards knew but the Ministry had wanted forgotten."

Severus frowned. "Reg, what spells was he talking about? Spells that the Ministry bans are usually dark ones."

"Hang on, I'm getting to that. Then he told us that this wizard could give us jobs that paid well, that would be more than we would ever get on our own, and all we had to do was to agree to follow him and his policies. Right there I was suspicious, my dad told me plenty of times to never sign or agree to anything unless I knew exactly what I was agreeing to, all terms spelled out clearly. But Lucius said before we agreed to anything, we should relax and mingle with each other. There was a table filled with food and drinks, mostly sealed. I took a bottle of pumpkin juice, it was damn hot in that room."

"Regulus, you're certain the pumpkin juice was sealed?"

"Yes, Severus, I'm sure," Regulus said irritably. "I'm not stupid. I only drank a little of it even so, and then I spent the rest of the time talking about Quidditch with Avery and Nott. Neither of them seemed all that concerned over what Lucius had told us. Then again, they never did use their head for much except memorizing Quidditch stats and broom maneuvers. After about an hour and a half, Lucius and some other bloke called MacNair comes and calls us back into the circle and when we come over, Lucius starts chanting this weird incantation over and over. All of a sudden I felt like I couldn't move, and then it was like I was under an Imperius Curse. I could see and hear everything, but I couldn't move or react like I wanted to. Everyone else in the circle was swaying and chanting and then Lucius cried, "Come, be a part of the new world order! Join with the rest of us who wish wizards to once again be a force for might and take back the world from these puling Muggles who stole it from us. Magic is the way of the future, the lifeblood of our society, and we should rule, not creep about in shadows, hiding from the Muggles who are blind to magic's gifts. Come, my brothers, and follow my Lord Voldemort, and taste in the power and glory that is ours by right!"

Severus stared in horror as Regulus continued.

"I couldn't move, Sev! I couldn't get away. All I could do was sway back and forth like some bloody cobra mesmerized by a snake charmer. Then MacNair produced a parchment and he went around the circle. He nicked each of us on the thumb with a quill sharpener and made us sign our name to the end of the parchment in our own blood! I fought against it, I did, but the spell was too strong and I . . .I signed too. And after I did . . ." Regulus's voice broke, and it was a moment before he regained control. " . . .I felt some of my magic was bound. They stole a part of my magic!"

"Shhh! Calm down, Reg, you don't want to wake your parents, do you?"

Regulus shook his head. "Merlin help me, no! They'd kill me. You know what they were, don't you?"

"I know. They were followers of the wizard once known as Tom Riddle. What else happened, Reg?"

"After we had signed, Lucius declared us initiates of the Iron Mask, and gave us some firewhiskey to drink, I almost puked right there. Then he gave us some kind of coin with a mask on it and said whenever we had a meeting, the coin would glow and hum. He told us to keep the coin about us at all times, and gave us a string to hang it on." Regulus reached into a pocket and pulled out a gold Galleon stamped with an iron mask on the back instead of the Gringotts seal. "I acted all pleased like the other dolts, but I didn't put it on. All I wanted to do was run away, Sev. I never wanted to be part of Lucius's bloody club, I only agreed because he was being so annoying. I never thought it was anything like _that_! What am I going to do, Sev? I don't want to become a dark wizard! I _hate_ the bloody Dark Lord!"

Regulus's eyes were wild and he was shivering, Severus abruptly cast a wandless Warming Charm over him and moved over to pat his shoulder. "Easy, Reg. Somehow, I'll get you out of this."

"How? Can you dispel a magical contract bound by blood?"

"Not me personally." Severus said, keeping his voice low and calm. Inwardly, his mind was racing. Who did he know that would be willing to help Regulus that would not feel obligated to report him to Ministry authorities?

"Can your mother do it?"

Severus shook his head. "No. Give me a minute." _Think, Snape! Who is the most influential and strongest wizard you know?_ An instant later he had an answer. "We'll go to the Headmaster. If anyone can tell us what to do to break this binding, Dumbledore can."

"Really? Do you think he'll help?"

"What have we got to lose? I don't think he'll refuse, Reg. You were manipulated into signing that damn contract." He patted the younger wizard on the shoulder again.

"I feel like such a stupid ass. You told me to be careful."

"Stop it, Reg!" ordered Severus sternly. He couldn't abide self-pity, in himself or anyone else. "What's done is done. We'll deal with it. Okay?"

"Okay." Regulus drew in a shaky breath. "Thanks, Sev."

"For what? I haven't done anything yet." Severus snorted. "Look, it's late, I'm tired and so are you, probably. So why don't we both get some sleep? I'll write a letter to the Headmaster tomorrow and see if he'll meet us at Diagon Alley at the Leaky Cauldron."

"Good idea." Regulus sighed. Then he rose, still looking like a lost foundling, and Severus gritted his teeth.

 _Merlin, but I'm such a bloody puffskein!_ "If you want to sleep here tonight, little brother, you can."

"I can? Sev, I'm not a baby . . ."

"Good thing, because I'm useless at taking care of anybody under eleven." Severus said wryly. "But mind you stay on your _own_ side of the bed, because if I wake up to your foot or hand in my face, I'll punch your lights out, got me?"

"Don't worry, Sev," Regulus chuckled. "I don't move about in my sleep. Sirius does, but not me. Once I fall asleep, I sleep like a rock, still and quiet."

"You'd better," said the other grouchily, then he turned on his side and pulled the covers over his head.

He felt the mattress shift as Regulus climbed on the other side and settle down, and hid a smirk. His threat was bluff, for he knew the bed was so large it could have slept four comfortably, and even if Reg did toss and turn in his sleep, he wouldn't bother his roommate.

Come what may tomorrow, tonight all he wanted to do was sleep.

Then Severus shut his eyes and tried to find the dream he had lost upon waking, of Lily and he walking along a tropical shore, holding hands and kissing.

**Thanks to everyone who is sticking with me and rooting for Sev/Lily, Reg, and Petunia/James . . .that part will be coming up in a few chapters. As always, leave a review if you can, I'd love to hear from you!**

**Next: Severus and Regulus go to speak with Dumbledore. What do you think he will tell them?**


	13. Dumbledore's Agents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus and Regulus meet with Dumbledore

A nice hot shower the next morning helped to settle Regulus's nerves a bit, but he was still jittery enough that he barely picked at his food at breakfast. That was not typical behavior, normally Regulus was a hearty eater, especially in the morning. So of course Walburga noticed and asked what the matter was.

Regulus felt his stomach knot up even more at the concern in his mother's voice and Orion too was giving him a speculative look. He hated disappointing his parents, he didn't delight in being a rebel and confrontational, like his older brother did. Just imagining the horror on their faces if they ever knew what he had done last night made his stomach churn. He swallowed sharply and prayed he wouldn't sick up right there.

"Reg, dear, are you feeling all right? You're so quiet. And you're not eating," his mother said, cocking her head at him.

"Late night last night, son?" asked Orion knowingly. "Ate too much at Lucius's meeting, did you?"

Regulus nodded, feeling his face heat. He knew they were just being typical parents, but why in Merlin's name did they have to fuss over him in front of his best friend? It was just so bloody embarrassing!

Walburga's eyes narrowed. "Or drank too much?"

"No. I only had one butterbeer, Mum," Reg told her, and lifted his head to look her in the eye, so she would see he wasn't lying.

"Hmm . . .well you know what too much rich food tends to do to your digestive system, Regulus. I've warned you before—"

"Mum, _please!_ " Regulus cried, and wished suddenly he could just vanish, he was so mortified.

Walburga waved her wand and a vial of Stomach Soother popped up near her plate. "Here, Regulus. Drink that, it'll settle your stomach. Perhaps you'd like some toast and tea instead of a cheese omelet? Are you feverish?"

"No!"

Walburga rose and came around the table to feel her son's forehead.

 _Merlin save me, but I wish somebody would just hex me now!_ Regulus groaned inwardly, reluctantly submitting to his mother's fussing. When he darted a look at Severus, he noted the other boy was keeping his eyes fixed on his plate, eating his breakfast intently. _Thanks, Sev, for trying to spare my feelings,_ he thought gratefully. He hoped that Severus could pen the letter to Dumbledore after breakfast and that the Headmaster would respond promptly, for Regulus was going insane, terrified he had been tainted by dark magic because of that ritual last night.

Severus chewed and swallowed, trying to keep a smile off his face as Mrs. Black fussed over her youngest. Eileen was that way on occasion with him as well, especially after Tobias had been at him, and while he pretended to be annoyed, he secretly enjoyed the attention and concern his mother showed him. He suspected Reg was the same.

The fourteen-year-old huffed petulantly and rolled his eyes. "You see, Mother? I'm _not sick!_ "

"Then why will you not eat breakfast?" she countered.

"Maybe 'cause I'm just not hungry," her son growled in a tone just shy of disrespect. "Quit fussing, damn it!"

"Mind that mouth, young man!" she scolded, and pinched his ear hard.

Reg yelped and apologized, giving in and drinking the potion she had summoned.

Severus continued eating, thinking knowingly, _Sometimes it's better to just given in and let them fuss over you, they will anyhow, and it's less embarrassing if you don't fight them._ Lily had explained once after a particularly embarrassing episode that mothers loved to feel useful and taking care of their children made them feel wonderful, especially if the child is an independent one, like Sev was. "Mums need to be needed, it makes them stressed and unhappy if you don't let them take care of you, then they think they're not good mothers."

Finally Walburga had satisfied herself that her son was not in dire need of emergency medical care and let him be. As soon as Severus had finished eating, Reg hustled him upstairs and gave him quill and parchment to write Dumbledore.

Severus penned a hasty letter, telling Dumbledore they needed his advice on an important matter and would he please meet them at the Leaky Cauldron as quickly as possible?

He sent it off with Brighteyes and then all they could do was wait for a reply. Severus suggested they go flying, since he could see that Reg was too nerve-wracked to read a book or make a potion, and he didn't mind flying with his best friend for fun.

"Okay. Anything to get my mind off of the screwed up mess I'm in," Regulus agreed, and summoned his Comet 700. He mounted with a careless ease that made him the envy of his friend.

Severus had a Starblaze 500, a slightly less aerodynamic broom than Regulus's, but that didn't bother him any, since he would rather spend money on potions ingredients rather than a broom any day of the week. He wasn't obsessed with them like so many boys his age were. To him, a broom was good for transportation, but otherwise he'd happily purchase the newest potions manual or a handmade golden cauldron.

They flew around Hyde Park under Notice Me Not charms for an hour and a half before a strange owl located them and handed Severus a sealed envelope in the Headmaster's classic script.

"Well? What did he say?" Reg demanded, nearly falling off his broom trying to see the letter in Severus's hand.

"Will you stop?" his friend snapped. "Before you fall headfirst into the pavement and then I'll be stuck explaining to your mother why I watched you crash and lose what brains you had." He circled and landed next to a small wrought iron bench.

Regulus followed him down, nearly crashing headlong into a tree in his eagerness to see what Dumbledore had replied. _Please, oh please, have a way I can get out of Lucius's group of Death Eater wannabes. I will worship you for the rest of my life if that were the case, Headmaster. You're the most powerful wizard of our age, surely you must know what I can do to get away from them with my skin intact._

He stared at the letter in Severus's hands as if it contained the secrets to eternal life, and asked, half-pleadingly, "You gonna tell me what he said and put me out of my misery, Snape? Or do you enjoy watching me suffer?"

"Quit being so dramatic, Reg!" his friend snorted. "Okay, listen up." He read the following missive aloud.

" _Dear Severus,_

_It would be my pleasure to meet you and Regulus at the Leaky Cauldron and help you resolve any difficulties you may have been having. I assume they are ones you do not feel comfortable discussing with your parents, else you'd have already done so._

_Bring your appetites, lunch is on me. We can discuss whatever you wish afterwards. Meet me at the Leaky Cauldron at 2PM today._

_Best regards,_

_Headmaster Albus Dumbledore"_

Regulus heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank Merlin! Now I just have to manage to get through the rest of the morning without going insane."

"Want my advice, Reg?"

"Yes, please."

"Go and take a nap."

Regulus grinned. "Sev, you're a true friend. You won't mind?"

Severus shook his head. "No. I can occupy myself, Black. I just hope Dumbledore can really help you."

"You don't think he can?" Regulus's jaw dropped.

"Let's just say that I'm not quite one of his fan club, Reg. He never really helped me when I was getting bullied by the Marauders, but maybe it'll be different with you. I hope so."

"So do I, Sev." Regulus said fervently.

Then they flew back to Grimmauld Place, hoping the old wizard's reputation was not overrated and he would consent to help a student in need, even if they happened to be from Slytherin House.

After a very good lunch of fish and chips, in Severus's case, and roast beef sandwiches dripping with gravy in Albus and Regulus', Dumbledore beckoned the two boys to follow him to a private back room where he sometimes conducted business with questionable "acquaintances". The room was warded with spells against eavesdropping and listening spells, as well as Seeing Charms. It contained a low table and some chairs with worn cushions on them and the three quickly seated themselves on them.

Dumbledore was wearing a more conservative set of robes, they were a pale blue and had only a few embellishments upon them as compared to his usual moon and stars and vibrant purple ensemble. He folded his hands in his lap and smiled encouragingly at the two boys. "All right then, lads. Suppose you tell me what's bothering you?"

Regulus gulped and looked at his hands, plainly ashamed and guilty-feeling.

When it became apparent that he wasn't going to say anything, Severus cleared his throat. "Sir, we called you here to tell you about something that happened last night. It's something that was probably illegal, but I'm not entirely sure about it, so I figured you could tell us. Reg got invited to a secret society meeting by Lucius Malfoy . . ."

Dumbledore listened without interruption as Severus related most of what Regulus had told him.

But when it came to the part about the ritual, the Headmaster held up a hand and asked Regulus to please describe exactly as he remembered it the ritual Lucius had performed.

Regulus did so, haltingly, but he managed to relate the horror of that night. "I never . . .no one has ever . . .hurt me like that. It was like . . .like I was a puppet, I couldn't do anything except what he said. Sir, it was evil, no one should ever control someone like that. _It's wrong!_ "

"Yes, it is, Regulus. That is why the Imperius Curse is one of the Unforgivables. What Lucius did was not quite an Imperius Curse, but it comes very close. It certainly is borderline dark magic at the very least. That ritual is very old, and I was not aware the Malfoys still practiced the old ways to such an extent."

"What do you mean, sir?" asked Severus.

"The ritual Mr. Malfoy used to bind Regulus and the others to him is an old spell once used by noble wizarding families to bind house elves and serfs who worked their land to them. The spell made them totally obedient to the master's will, and unable to rebel against him. But it is not an easy spell to cast, it requires a great deal of power and will and is very draining. But it does work, as I'm sure your friend and the others can attest."

"Is there a way to reverse it?" Regulus demanded, his hazel eyes desperate. "Please, sir, there has to be a way to remove it! I would have _never_ gone to the stupid meeting if I'd known that was what Lucius planned. I thought it was just some stupid sodding little pureblood club where we'd get together and complain about our parents and eat some food and maybe have a drink or two or whatever. I didn't know he was using it as . . .a recruitment center for young Death Eaters! Sir, if there is _any_ way to remove the spell, I'm begging you . . .help me! I'm not one of them, even if I am a Slytherin, and I won't prove my brother right!"

Dumbledore held up a hand to halt Regulus's impassioned plea. "Regulus, you have no need to convince me of your sincerity, my boy. I knew from the first that you were not a candidate for believing the lies Voldemort spun. Yes—Voldemort—to name a thing reduces its power over you, and he is not a fiend, merely a man who has gone terribly wrong. And so have those who follow him. As for the spell, yes, it can be reversed—"

Regulus gasped in relief, he was so happy he was nearly in tears. His parents would never need to know, and only Severus and Dumbledore would know his secret shame.

"However, I have another proposition for you, young Regulus," began the wily old wizard. His eyes were sparkling madly, and Severus was instantly suspicious.

 _What is the old coot planning, I wonder? Whatever it is, I don't think I'm going to like it._ He frowned suspiciously at Dumbledore.

The old man took no notice, all of his focus was on Regulus.

"For many years now, I have been attempting to gather information on my former student's movements, to try and learn what his plans are, where he will go and what he will do next. Tom is a very clever, if insane, wizard, and he does nothing without a purpose, even if that purpose is merely to satisfy his own twisted pleasures. But thus far, I have been unsuccessful. Every wizard I sent to infiltrate his circle has been discovered and . . .done away with." The old wizard sighed heavily, for those deaths weighed upon his conscience. And now he was about to ask something no adult should ever have to ask of a minor underage wizardling.

"What's that got to do with Regulus?" Severus asked, all of his senses tingling in warning.

"All of my previous agents failed because they were unable to blend in with the Death Eaters, they couldn't gain Voldemort's trust and he does not trust very easily at all. He prefers to work alone, but somewhere along the line he realized he would need others to help him on his way to greatness. A ruler of the world, even one that is feared and hated, needs followers and lackeys. So he began to gather them, purebloods with like-minded views who hated change and Muggles and Muggleborns and taught them his dark spells and encouraged them in their hatred until they lost their way and willingly traveled the dark path. Young Lucius is one of his most dedicated followers, based upon what I have heard from you and others. Voldemort seems to trust him to recruit more young blood into his ranks."

"Malfoy's scum, I've always known that," Regulus snapped. "What of it?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "Lucius comes from a powerful and influential family, much like your own, Regulus. That is why he wanted you to become a member of his Iron Masks. Because Voldemort needs the support of the old families, and their money, since he was left penniless for much of his life."

"Ha! What does he think I am, a vault of endless Galleons?" sneered the youngest Black.

"No. Lucius thinks that you are a prime candidate for a loyal follower. He is mistaken of course, but you must realize something, Regulus. No one has ever gotten this close to one of Voldemort's trusted allies before. But you have, even though you don't want it."

Regulus's eyes narrowed, not liking the direction the conversation was going. "What do you mean, sir? All I want is for you to remove this blasted spell."

"I know, my boy. And I would do so in a heartbeat except . . .this is the perfect opportunity for me to learn about the enemy. Don't you see, Regulus? You could be my eyes and ears, and report to me what goes on inside the meetings. They would not suspect you, they invited you in and all you have to do is pretend to be one of them." Dumbledore said in his most persuasive tone.

Before Regulus could reply, Severus did. "You're off your rocker, old man!" he exploded. "We come to you for help and this is what you offer? A chance for Reg to put his head into the viper's mouth and chance getting bitten? You're asking him to risk his life! He's a kid, fourteen, how can you ask that of him? Can't find an adult to do your dirty work?"

"Merlin, Sev! I'm not a bloody baby!" Regulus cried, flushing. "I can take care of myself!"

"If there were another way, I would take it, Severus. I do not like asking Regulus to do this, and would not if I had another choice. But we must all make sacrifices and this is an important job . . ."

"Yeah, too important to make a kid into a spy!" Severus growled.

"Will it help bring him down, Headmaster?" Regulus asked suddenly.

"Yes. With the right information, we can be able to save innocent lives and prevent more deaths. If we are lucky, we may even be able to discover his weaknesses and bring him down for good and all. He is not immortal, however much he wishes to believe he is." Dumbledore stated firmly. "Information is the key to destroying him and his followers. And you, Regulus Black, are in the perfect position to collect it."

"Do I have a chance?"

"A very good one, by my lights."

Regulus considered, noting Severus's thunderous glare and wincing. He really hated Lucius and his company, but if he could help to defeat Voldemort . . . "I don't know, sir. I'm not trained in this kind of thing."

"I will train you," Dumbledore reassured him.

"Reg, don't!" Severus cried. "He's using you, can't you see that?" He spun on the Headmaster. "You can't do this, sir! You're sending him to his death!"

"Death is always a possibility, I'll not deny it," said the Headmaster gravely. "But so is life, my boy. I believe Regulus is resourceful enough to protect himself."

"Oh that's rich! You're sending a kid to do a job a grown man couldn't!"

"I have no other choice. I would never consider it if there were another alternative, Mr. Snape. But there is not and we need this information badly. It could mean the difference between victory and defeat."

Regulus gazed at the Headmaster intently. "If I do this for you . . .if I pretend to be one of them and something goes wrong . . .will you help me?"

"If I can, I shall."

Severus snorted. _Ha! You must think we're idiots. I've heard that one before!_ "That's not good enough, Headmaster. He needs someone to back him up, someone he can trust. And I can pose as a pureblood if I have to. I'm going with him . . .to watch his back."

"Sev, you can't!" sputtered Regulus.

"Can and will," said the other stubbornly. "You want Reg as a spy, sir? Fine, but I'm part of the deal. Where he goes, I go. I'm his friend, he can trust me to look after him."

"Look after me? Jumping Juno, Severus! You treat me like I'm some stupid five year old. I can make up my own mind!" Regulus glared at the older boy.

"Then be smart and tell him no, Reg!" hissed Severus in his ear. "It's not a game, you could die. I have a bad feeling about this."

"I don't like it much myself," Regulus admitted. "But what if he's right and Voldemort can be defeated? How can I not help? He's the enemy of my family, Severus. Mine and yours and everyone's."

Severus shook his head. "I know that, you silly ass. But enemy or not, you shouldn't have to risk your life because the adults are too cowardly to stand up to them. Just tell him to remove the spell and we can go home."

Regulus hesitated a long moment, mulling it over. He knew Severus was right. To be a spy was to put one's life on the line and also one's honor and integrity. He would have to become the kind of person he hated in order to be a successful spy. He wasn't sure he could do it, but he was willing to try. For Dumbledore was right too. They needed reliable information badly. He read the papers, he knew that the Death eaters were growing in power and numbers and preying more and more upon anyone they thought deserved to be tortured and killed. Hysteria was beginning to sweep the wizarding world and Regulus knew that if something weren't done, it would consume them all. What if the information he could gather turned the tide for the Light?

And yet, a part of him cringed and wished he could just follow Severus's advice and leave. He didn't want to die a hero or a failed agent. But neither did he want to live as a coward.

"Regulus! You aren't seriously considering this!" Severus muttered.

"I am. He's right, you know. Information's priceless."

"So's your life. If you go and do this, Reg . . ."

"No, Sev. I have no right to risk your life. Besides, you're a half-blood. They'd never accept you."

"How many Slytherins know I'm a half-blood, Black? Only you. I fooled them all for years, I know how to pretend better than you, little brother. We're best friends, it won't seem odd when you ask Lucius to let me join too."

"No, I can't ask you to do that!"

"Who's asking? I'm telling you," said his friend firmly.

Regulus frowned. "Fine1 But you'd better not die, Snape, or else I'll follow you through the Veil and kick your stubborn arse into heaven, y hear me?"

"I hear you, you crazy idiot!" Severus smirked. "And the same goes for you, kid."

Both Slytherins turned and looked up at the Headmaster, who had been serenely contemplating his mismatched socks while they were arguing amongst themselves. "We'll do it, sir." Regulus said firmly. "Both of us will be your spies."

"Both?" Dumbledore looked startled. "Severus, there is no need to risk your life—"

"Yes there is. I won't let you send him in there alone. Either both of us go or neither of us go. Take it or leave it . . .sir."

Dumbledore shook his head. "It would seem we are at an impasse. Very well, gentlemen. You will both be my agents. Welcome to the Order of the Phoenix."

"The Order of the Phoenix? What's that?" asked Regulus.

"The resistance movement I have organized to fight against Voldemort. You are now its youngest members."

"Oh, joy," muttered Severus.

"I will introduce you to some of the other members later. Your training begins now. And the first task you must accomplish is to . . .tell no one what you are about. Not your parents, not your girlfriend, _no one_."

"But why?" asked Reg ingenuously.

"Because they might give you away by mistake. Mum's the word, boys. Act like everything is normal at school and at home."

"What about the spell? Shouldn't you remove it?"

"I will remove most of it, but some of it must remain, to convince Lucius you are under his control. I know it's unpleasant, but you will simply have to endure it. The spell marks you as one who belongs." Dumbledore murmured, and chanted a spell to make most of the curse vanish.

Regulus felt lighter and less stressed once that was done, and he thanked Dumbledore for removing it so cleverly.

"It was nothing, my boy. Now you may begin your duties with a clear heart."

"Half a minute, sir. What are we getting paid?"

"Sev!"

He ignored Regulus' squawk, really Regulus had no idea about accounts and the fact that you never performed a service for anyone without getting your own back. Regulus had never grown up wondering where your next meal was coming from.

Dumbledore named a figure, and Severus argued a bit with him. But finally he settled on a price and it was more than he had expected. At least he wouldn't starve after he finished school and went to live on his own and it was only fair Dumbledore pay them for risking their necks.

"Good, it's all settled then. Return here at six o'clock tomorrow and I shall begin teaching you how to operate as an undercover agent. And do not forget . . .tell no one! For one thing I do know, and that is Voldemort had sent spies here and the only way to rid ourselves of them is to gather better information than they do. Good luck, my boys and I will see you tomorrow."

And with that, he stood and then Apparated away, leaving two new recruits looking at each other in a sort of stunned resignation.

 _Bloody hell, what have we done? We really are insane._ Severus thought, shaking his head. But at least he wasn't alone.


	14. Oracle Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily prophesizes concerning herself, SEv, and Regulus

Lily sat in front of her vanity, vigorously brushing her hair, making her auburn strands shimmer like burnished copper. She always brushed out her hair before she went to sleep every night, otherwise she ended up with a rat's nest of tangles. She knew there was a potion you could put on your hair to prevent tangles, but Lily preferred to simply brush her hair, the motion was soothing and familiar, and at heart she was an old-fashioned girl.

After brushing her hair out, she got into her pajamas and curled up in bed. It was a little earlier than she usually went to sleep, about eleven o'clock, but she was oddly weary, even though she hadn't done anything strenuous except go jogging in the park with Petunia. She had just received a letter from Severus four days ago, and was happy that his summer was going well. She just wished she could share it with him. She closed her eyes, remembering the last time she had kissed him goodbye, and she smiled. _Sev, I miss you so much. But in another few weeks, I'll be seeing you. Funny, but this is the first time that a few weeks seem like an eternity._ She read a few pages of her new paperback book, then she felt her eyes beginning to close and she quickly set the book down and snuggled down into the covers. In moments, she was asleep.

At first, she slept deeply, without dreams. Then, all at once, she was walking with Severus, hand in hand down a dark twisty road. Regulus was next to Severus, on his opposite side, and there was a terrible feeling of dread and anticipation in the air. Lily shivered with cold, and Severus wrapped his arm about her, even though the night was mild. It was not the weather that caused her to shiver. It was what waited for them at their destination.

Something dark and dangerous dwelled beyond the dark road, and though all three knew of it, they did not alter their course even slightly.

Abruptly, Lily halted, and stiffened, her large emerald eyes going flat and focused on something intangible.

Severus peered at her worriedly. "Lily, what is it? What do you See?" For he recognized the signs, this was how his little oracle got just before she had a vision.

She opened her mouth and said, quietly and forcefully, " _Three together shall walk the paths of night, for only by infiltrating the heart of darkness can the dark be defeated. Be swift, be cunning, and be steadfast and you shall never be destroyed. Trust in yourselves and each other and the dark will not triumph. Fail and the dark shall destroy all."_

She shuddered violently, then began repeating the prophecy again.

" _Three together shall walk the paths of night . . ."_

With a sharp cry, Lily jerked awake, trembling and gasping, her mind full of the prophecy she had dreamt. _Write it down, I must write it down._ She groped for the pad and pencil she usually kept on her nightstand and began to scribble rapidly.

She had just finished writing the last word when Petunia tapped on the door and entered.

"Lily? You all right? I heard you yell." Her sister was dressed in one of her silky pajama sets, a royal blue color that went well with her blond hair.

"I'm fine, Tuney. I just had . . .a dream," Lily answered, her eyes still vague and sleep-filled.

Petunia came forward and sat on the edge of her sister's bed, concern written all over her face. "Was it . . .one of _those_ dreams?" she asked cautiously.

She knew of her sister's ability to prophecy in dreams, and though she was distrustful of magic in general, Lily's Sight was accepted by her, because it was a talent that non-wizards could possess. Lily's first vision had occurred when she was six, and had Seen her grandfather drop dead of a heart attack mowing his lawn. The little girl had been hysterical, and insisted they go over to Grandy's house and when Polly and Petunia had done so, they had found him on the lawn, near death. But because of Lily's vision, he did not die that day, they managed to get him to a hospital in time. He died six years later, peacefully in his sleep, and that his granddaughter did not See.

Slowly, Lily nodded. "I dreamed about me and Sev and Sev's best friend Reg." She lifted the tablet with the prophecy upon it and thrust it at Petunia. "That's what I remember about it."

Petunia read it over twice then she set it down on the bed and asked, "But what does it mean? What is the darkness that threatens everything and who are the three this refers to?"

"I . . .don't know for sure, because prophecy is always vague, but. . .I think it might be me, Sev, and Reg. I was with them in my dream. But the rest . . .the darkness might refer to that psycho dark wizard I told you about."

"The one who wants to rule the world, or some other thing like that?" Petunia snorted derisively.

"That one. He calls himself Lord . . .V-Voldemort," Lily made herself say the name. "And his name is so feared no one speaks it aloud much. I think that he and his followers are the darkness of the prophecy."

Petunia looked skeptical, nibbling on her lower lip. "And you think the three are you, Reg and Sev? That you're supposed to walk down some path at night and fight some crazy dark wizard?"

"Something like that, yes."

"Lily, that's insane! You're fifteen, how can you fight some nutcase and his organization of evil? Who do you think you are, Superwoman?"

"No, but . . .it felt so real, Tuney! The dream, I mean! I was frightened and cold, yet I was filled with determination and a purpose. And so were Sev and Reg. If I am meant to do this . . .then I shall."

"How can you tell?"

Lily shrugged. "I don't know, Tuney. It's hard to describe. I can choose not to listen to the prophecy or to do what it says. Such is the freedom of an oracle to choose. But if I choose wrong, then I have to live with the consequences." She looked down at her hands, tracing the forget-me-not pattern on the coverlet. "I've never dreamed an oracle dream about more than one person before. I don't know if that's good or bad."

"Maybe the dream was meant for them and not you?" Petunia speculated, hoping desperately for Lily to say yes. She was suddenly seized with terror, not for herself, but for her little sister.

"No . . .it was clearly meant for all of us," Lily disagreed, feeling the certainty lodge deep inside of her."I would not have seen the three of us that way if it were not meant for the three of us together. But I'm scared, Tuney," she admitted softly. "If it's a true vision, then we have this huge responsibility to defeat one of the most powerful dark wizards ever. How can I do that? I'm not even out of school yet."

"You don't have to, Lil," Petunia said swiftly, gripping her sister's hand. "Forget about this weird vision or whatever. You're a kid, you shouldn't be worrying about saving the world."

Lily gave her sister a sad smile. "I know. But . . .I am. If I don't do what the prophecy says, then he'll win, and the wizarding world— _my_ world, Sev's world—will be destroyed by him. How can I permit that?"

"Lily, you could die, for heaven's sake!" hissed her sister, longing to take the younger Evans and shake her.

"No, not if all of us stick together. _Three together shall walk the paths of night_ . . . _Be swift, be cunning, and be steadfast and you shall never be destroyed. Trust in yourselves and each other and the dark will not triumph._ " Lily recited quietly.

"Yeah, but what about the last line— _Fail and the dark shall destroy all?_ That implies that you could make a mistake or . . .or something and then . . ."

"Yes. There is always that possibility. No prophecy is written in stone, Petunia. Even the great oracles at Delphi did not predict true one hundred percent. Prophecy is meant as a guide, a warning, a glimpse into the future, it isn't an absolute unless you make it one."

"Then you don't need to act on this, Lily."

Lily's hand covered her sister's. "But look what will happen if I don't. I can't risk it, Tuney. We can't have that bastard win. He's as bad as Hitler, or Stalin, or Mussolini ever was."

"Then why can't some of your adult wizards handle him?" Petunia demanded hoarsely. "Why the bloody hell does it have to be you three kids?"

"Maybe because we have skills the others don't. Or because we're willing and they aren't. I don't know, Tuney. I wish I hadn't ever dreamed this. I don't _want to do this_ ," Lily cried. "But I also don't want to bear the burden of allowing a megalomaniac to take over wizarding Britain if I can prevent it. Besides, what I saw might not come to pass for quite some time. Maybe a year or two."

"What are you going to do in the meantime, Lily? Learn how to take out some dark wizards?" Petunia asked sarcastically.

"If need be," her sister replied. "Tuney, please. Don't make this hard for me. I can't tell any of this to Mum and Dad, you know they would never understand."

"I'm not sure _I_ understand," Petunia sighed. "Is there no other way for you to fulfill this prophecy?"

"I don't believe so. I have to be involved in it, and there's no way around that. But maybe I won't need to confront Voldemort directly. Maybe that part of the prophecy can be fulfilled by someone else. But whatever I have to do, I'm glad that at least one member of my family knows the truth."

"You're nuts, Lily Anne Evans! Absolutely nuts!" Petunia growled, her eyes misting. "I don't know why I'm agreeing to this . . .I should just tell Mum and Dad and let them deal with you. . . .But I won't. I'll keep your secret, little sister. Just promise me one thing."

"What?"

"That you'll let me know if you're about to do something dangerous . . .because I don't want some hokey wizard showing up to tell me that you've . . .gotten yourself killed. I want to at least be forewarned."

"That's fair. I promise, Tuney." Then she threw her arms about her sister and hugged her. "I love you, Tuney-Rooney."

Petunia giggled at the old nickname, which was one their mother used to call her as baby. She held Lily close. "Love you too, Lily-bug."

They remained that way for several long moments, drawing strength and comfort from each other, until Lily yawned and said she was going to go back to sleep, and Petunia released her.

Petunia turned and looked at her sister, and asked, "So are you going to write to Sev about this?"

"No. It's not something I can trust to a letter, even wizard post," Lily said. "Don't ask me why, but this prophecy must be kept as secret as possible. If anyone from You-Know-Who's camp found out about it . . .they would try to kill us. So . . .I have to wait to tell him. When we get back to school, I'll tell him then and Regulus too."

"Okay. Suit yourself." Petunia said. "Good night, Lil." She left her little sister then and returned to her own room, where she tossed and turned until dawn and wished there were something she could do to change Lily's mind. But she knew her sister, and when Lily was fixed on something, she was stubborn as a rock, and would not give in. All Petunia could do was pray that she would be safe and hope that Voldy-whoever committed suicide before Lily and her friends had to face him. It was too bad really that Petunia didn't know where he lived, for she would have liked to run the bastard over with her father's car. Not even a wizard would survive that, she'd wager.

**So there you have Lily's talent in action. How did you like the way the two sisters interacted?**

**Next: Sev, Lily, and Reg return to school and face a year like none other, full of secrets and danger.**


	15. Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keeping Dumbledore's promise means grave changes for Severus and Lily and Regulus

_September 1st, 1976:_

_Hogwarts Express_

Lily boarded the huge huffing red steam engine, her trunk floating idly behind her, and her eyes darting hither and yon, searching for one particular face among the sea of seething students. But she did not see Severus anywhere. She turned about, having gone almost to the end of the first row of compartments, and usually Severus stayed within that range, away from the back of the train where the Marauders and their ilk liked to hang out, and started to go back up the row, when she banged into a broad chest.

"Hey, watch where you're going, babe," said James, though he didn't sound at all sorry when looked down and saw who had bumped into him. "How was your summer, Evans? Finally ditch the dungeon crawler?"

Lily scowled up at him, in no mood for his comments. "Mind your own business, Potter."

"Why are you so snippy, Evans? _You_ bumped into me."

"Okay, I'm sorry. Now will you please move? I'm trying to find someone."

"Snivellus?" he inquired saucily, not moving an inch.

" _Don't_ call him that horrid name!" she flared, one hand tightening on her wand. "And you better leave him alone this term, Potter, or else!"

Laughing, James held up a hand. "Easy, spitfire. I told you before, I'll leave the slimy snake be if you'll just go out with me, Evans. One date and old Snivelly's ancient history."

"Save it, Potter, for your fan club!" Lily growled. She made as if to push past him, but he caught her arm. "Let go!"

"Now, now, don't get in a snit. You're awful grouchy, must be that time again, huh?" he teased, for he loved it when Lily got riled. Her emerald eyes burned with a brilliant green fire that lit up her whole face.

"Listen, dung for brains, get your arrogant arm off me right now, or I'll hex you right off this train, got me?" Her wand was in her hand then and pointed right at James's face.

Recognizing he might have pushed her too far, and having no wish to end up being hexed by a girl, James relented and let her go. "Okay, Evans. Don't get your undies in a twist. If you're looking for Snivelly, he's in the back with little Blackie and Avery, Nott, and Mulciber, having some kind of snake party." He jerked his thumb back towards the opposite end of the train.

Lily was startled. Why had Sev gone there and not waited for her like always? He had ridden with her on the train since they were first years and they had been separated almost the whole summer. _That's weird. He's been acting strange though, ever since he returned from the Black residence._ She gave a brisk nod to James, then spun around and walked down the corridor, her auburn hair fanning out behind her like a reddish-gold cape.

She passed Sirius, Remus, and Peter on her way to the back compartment, and Sirius called, "Going slumming with the snakes again, Evans? Be careful, they bite!"

Peter laughed hysterically, as usual, but Lily merely lifted her head and ignored them.

She was in the part of the train that was Slytherin territory now, and got some puzzled looks and a few hostile ones from the Slytherins as she passed them by, but finally she came to the second to last compartment, where she saw Nott, Avery, Mulciber, Reg and Severus, all sitting in the same compartment, discussing something.

Lily just stared. Why was Severus keeping company with some of the worst bullies and bigots in their year? The ones who hated Muggleborns and had said often enough that they should be expelled from Hogwarts or worse? _What are they talking about? Sev always told me that he was never interested in whatever they had to say, but he's listening quite intently to them now._ She felt a frission of uneasiness crawl up her spine.

Then she recalled the dream she had and was determined to tell Severus about it, and so she knocked on the door of the compartment.

"I'll get it," Severus said, rising and going to the door, relieved for the interruption. Anymore of Nott's pureblood supremacy speech and he was going to lose his breakfast.

"Lily!"

"Sev! I couldn't find you at first and I was getting worried," Lily said, her eyes lighting up. "What are you doing all the way back here?"

Severus grinned at her, before he recalled his new duties and said, "I . . .uh . . .was just having a bit of a meeting, Lil. Look, I can't explain it now," he began awkwardly, wishing like hell he had never made that promise to Dumbledore. "But I'll talk to you later, okay?"

Lily bit her lip, not understanding why he was suddenly so . . .distant. "All right, Sev. I'll be in the third compartment from the engine, same as usual. I have something really important I need to talk to you about."

He sighed, for the last thing he wanted was to go back inside the stuffy compartment and cozy up to his Slytherin Death Eater members. But he had agreed to be Dumbledore's spy and so he had no choice. "Okay, I'll meet you there soon as we're done here." Then he cupped her face between his hands and kissed her, a sweet lingering kiss.

Lily relaxed into his arms and he wished he could just go on like this forever, but then he heard Nott's voice, calling, "Hey, Snape! Smooch the bitch on your own time."

"Shut up, you arsehole!" came Reg's rejoinder.

Severus drew away. "Just ignore them," he said, his face heating at the crudeness of his new "friends".

"I intend to," Lily sniffed, her head up and then she turned and strode back up the corridor with a grace that befitted a queen. Or a powerful enchantress. Severus watched her go and considered running after her, but he restrained himself. Duty before pleasure. He turned back into the compartment.

The auburn-haired witch made her way back to their original compartment, still trying to figure out what was up with her boyfriend. But when she arrived at her destination, she found Alice and Cindy and Mary waiting for her. "Where's Severus, Lil?" asked Alice. "Usually he's your shadow."

"He's, uh, talking with some of his Housemates. He'll be along eventually," she told them, trying to sound casual.

"Oh. Okay," Alice said. Then she smiled and whispered, "You know what? I think Frank might actually pop the question this year."

"No way!" Mary squealed.

"What happened over the holidays?" asked Cindy, her eyes alight with the thrill of a juicy piece of gossip. "Tell, Alice! Tell us every dirty little detail."

"Well, I started writing Frank right after I got back home . . ."

Lily listened with half an ear to her friend chatter on about how wonderful Frank had been to her over the summer, recalling how she had been so happy with Severus until his drunken bully of a father had ruined it all with his insane temper. He was still in jail and Lily prayed he would rot there. If not for him, Severus would have spent the rest of the summer working at the pharmacy and she could have seen him every day and gone out with him in the evenings. But instead he had to pack up and go stay with Reg and she wasn't sure, but she had a niggling feeling that _something_ had happened while he was there, and it wasn't something good either.

Severus made a secret motion of his hand beside his nose to Regulus, indicating he wished to speak with the other boy privately. Regulus caught it and jerked his head towards the door. A moment later, Severus announced that he needed to use the bathroom and slipped out of the compartment.

Regulus waited for a few minutes, then said he too had to answer a call of nature, and left as well. Once he was outside, Severus dragged him into a storage compartment next door and shut it. "Reg, what do I do? She came looking for me, what do I tell her?"

"Who did?"

"Lily, you idiot! And she wants me to meet her back at our usual compartment. But how do I explain why I'm hanging around those scum?" Severus hissed agitatedly.

Reg looked pained. "I . . .don't know. Maybe you could . . .tell her they wanted answers for their summer assignments?"

Severus ran a hand through his hair. "That might work for today, but what about the rest of the time? She's not going to buy that excuse more than once."

"Hell, Sev. I wish I could help you, but I don't even know how I'm going to keep Sirius from strangling me once he finds out the company I'm keeping."

"Damn Dumbledore for making us keep this all so hush-hush!" Severus swore. "I want to tell her, Reg. I don't like keeping things from her. She's my best friend as well as my girlfriend."

Regulus flashed him a sympathetic look. "I wish I knew how to help you, Sev. Maybe you just shouldn't say anything at all."

Severus swore again then reluctantly agreed. "Okay. I'll try that."

"Come on, let's get back before they start growing suspicious." Regulus said. Then he made a face. " I just wish they weren't so bloody boring. All they talk about is Quidditch and ways to use dark curses."

"That's because that's all their little brains are capable of retaining, Reg." Severus grimaced. He was beginning to regret his decision to be Dumbledore's agent, even if the Headmaster had removed the compulsion on Regulus like he had promised.

It was going to be a long year.

Severus arrived at Lily's compartment with an hour left of the train ride. He found her sitting by herself paging through her new potions text, absently curling a strand of her fiery hair about her index finger. "Lily? Sorry, I meant to be here earlier," he began apologetically.

"What were you doing with those losers, Sev?" she demanded sharply.

"I . . .they asked me for help with their assignments," he said with a sigh. "I'm a prefect, I could hardly refuse them."

"They must have needed an awful lot of help then."

"Think about who you're talking about," Severus said, smirking.

Lily chuckled. "Right. Okay, I forgive you. I missed you, Sev."

"I know. I missed you too," he replied, then he walked over and kissed her, only this time the kiss was slow and gentle and he took his time.

Lily felt herself slowly begin to melt as the heat from that kiss transferred itself all through her body and set her on fire. Oh, how she had dreamed of this—his arms about her, holding her close, the way his lips caressed her, so soft and yet so very demanding. Her hands came up and twined in his silk black hair and then she was kissing him back with equal passion.

Severus gasped, his senses overloaded by the ferocity of Lily's kiss, and for one moment all he could do was _feel_ —and what he felt was an overwhelming desire to find a deserted island and make love to Lily morning, noon, and night for the rest of eternity and to hell with his oath. He drowned in the sensations she aroused in him until he was sure he would combust. But then she broke off the kiss and he came back to the dreary world again.

"Lily, I . . ."

"Sev, I'm sorry. But I need to talk to you about something," she said regretfully.

"What?"

She pulled him down to sit beside her, and he curled his arm about her and she snuggled into his shoulder. "I . . .had a dream while you were at Reg's house."

"About me, I hope?" he teased, his mouth quirking in that signature half-grin she loved so well.

"Well . . .yes and no. You were in it."

"Oh?"

"And so was I."

"Hmmm . . .dare I ask more?"

"Severus!" she poked him playfully. "Get your mind out of the gutter, please! You and I were in it, but it wasn't what you're thinking."

"And what am I thinking?"

"Something very naughty, Mr. Snape."

He laughed. "Right again, little oracle."

"Stop it!" she giggled as his breath tickled her ear. "Sev, I'm serious. In my dream, we were all walking down a dark road together, you, me, and Reg . . ."

Severus listened, shocked as Lily told him of the prophetic dream she had had. _No! She can't be involved. I can't put her in danger too!_ was his first thought. Bad enough Regulus was involved in this dangerous game, but he would be hexed into oblivion if he ever permitted his precious flower to spy also. _Three together shall walk the paths of night_ . . . _Be swift, be cunning, and be steadfast and you shall never be destroyed. Trust in yourselves and each other and the dark will not triumph._

"Lily, are you sure it was a true dream?" he forced himself to ask.

"What? Of _course_ it was!" she objected, hurt. "Sev, you know that I would never tell you about a dream unless I was sure it actually meant something. And I know this was a vision. I could feel the strands of the future shifting even as I woke up."

He looked into her gorgeous emerald eyes, so filled with conviction, love, and hope, and he cursed himself to hell for what he was about to do next. Then he said, each word burning his tongue like acid, "Lily, you haven't had a true vision since we were eight and you told Tuney not to jump off the swings, because one of chains was weakened and then she did and it broke and she ended up nearly knocking her front teeth out. And what you just described . . . .I . . .don't think it could possibly be true."

He wanted to kick himself hard when he saw how much his casual disregard for her gift hurt her. She stiffened in his embrace and her eyes filled with angry tears.

"You don't? Well, who's the oracle here, Severus Snape, me or you? I think I ought to know if what I dream is true or not! Even Tuney believed me!"

"Lily, I'm sorry," he began, but she jerked away from him and hunched up in the corner of the seat closest to the window.

"I don't know what your problem is, Sev, but right now just leave me alone."

"All right," he said, feeling guilt and shame twist his guts into shreds. It wasn't fair! The last thing he wanted was to fight with Lily. But her prophecy scared him to pieces and all he could think of was how to keep her safe. Safe at school, not walking the dark path beside him. _You were meant for sunlight, my love, not the darkness of the night. That's always been my domain. But oh God, I am sorry for hurting you. If only there were another way . . ._ He turned and gazed at the wall of the compartment, sick and bitterly angry at himself.

Lily stared out the window at the rolling green hills and tears trickled down her face. What had happened to the supportive concerned friend she had once knew? The old Severus would have never dismissed her dream so cavalierly. This new Severus was a stranger, it seemed, someone whom she did not know, and wasn't sure she wished to. She recalled Mary's comment earlier when she had told the other girl who Severus was with— _Maybe he's showing his true colors at last, Lily, and becoming a Death Eater._ She had denied that, of course, but now she feared that Mary might have been right. She closed her eyes and wished, for the first time ever, that she was back home.

The next two weeks were terrible for Severus, as he tried to placate Lily while at the same time maintaining his cover and cozying up to the Death Eater buffoons in his House. His one saving grace was Reg, who he could count on to cheer him up on occasion by brewing potions with him in their mini lab and playing a hand of cards. Reg was _persona non grata_ with his older brother as well.

Sirius had been so furious at his brother that he ended up hexing poor Reg and sending him to the Hospital Wing with an elephant's trunk. It had taken Madam Pomfrey three days to reverse the spell. Severus had then gone to confront Sirius and ended up getting into a fight with the pompous Black scion, and both of them had earned themselves detention with Flitwick for dueling in the corridors. The Charms professor had made them clean the entire Trophy Room without magic, including buffing all the suits of armor and the floor with beeswax until they could see their faces in it. By the time they were finished, Severus felt as if he had been run over by a lorry, and he vowed to never get caught dueling in the castle again.

"I always knew you were no good, Snape," Sirius had growled while rubbing the floor with a soft cloth. "Now you've corrupted my little brother, you slimy bastard!"

"Ah, shut up, Black! You don't know what the hell you're talking about. It's not what it seems and someday you'll realize that." _I just wish I knew when, because this is starting to ruin my relationship with Lily,_ Severus thought sadly as he scrubbed. _I can't keep avoiding her forever, but how can I face her when she sees me with **them** every day? _Each time she saw him with his "new" friends, he saw something die within her, and it was killing him that he couldn't tell her the truth—that it was all an act, a sham, that he was not becoming a Death Eater, only spying on them.

Utterly wretched, he put his back into the cleaning and scrubbed the floor with a vengeance, wishing he could scrub away the look on Lily's face—like an injured doe.

And he was the one who had put it there.

Lily was confused and hurt at the way Severus was avoiding her. He barely spoke to her during potions, except to ask her to pass ingredients or stir the cauldron. Gone were the spontaneous hugs and the sudden secret smiles shared inbetween classes. Now he looked away, and hurried to his next class without saying much of anything.

She had tried to talk to Reg about Severus's sudden change of heart, but Regulus had told her only, "Things aren't what they seem. Just trust him, Lily. Please."

There had been a note of desperation in his voice that Lily couldn't understand, and then before she could ask him anything further, he had dashed off to Quidditch practice, leaving her with an aching heart and a head full of questions with no answers.

"He told me that too," Cindy had snapped over lunch one afternoon. "But it's really getting to me, the way he won't explain why he's hanging around Club Death Eater all of a sudden."

"Sev too. I just don't get it, Cin. He was never like that before. What the hell happened?"

Cindy shrugged. "Who knows? They're boys, they make no sense sometimes. But if Reg keeps this up, I'm going to say goodbye, no matter how much I like him. I won't go out with a Death Eater wannabe."

Alice and Mary had clapped their hands. "That's the spirit, Cindy. No Death Eaters for us, right?"

"Right!" Cindy had yelled enthusiastically.

They all looked at Lily.

But Lily did not say anything, for she was too busy mourning the loss of her best friend. _What did I do? Maybe I never should have mentioned that stupid dream. But I always shared my dreams with him before. I don't understand what happened to you, Severus. But I'm not giving up on you yet. I'll give you one last chance and then if you still insist on pushing me aside to hang out with your arsehole Slytherin friends . . .I'll let you go._

Even thinking about doing something so drastic made her sick to her stomach. She had shared more of herself, her soul, with Severus than she had with anyone else. He had always been there, laughing and teasing her and they had vowed to never let anything come between them. Until now, nothing ever had.

Squaring her shoulders, she started towards the library, where she knew Severus would be studying at this time of night, he was always reviewing and doing homework at this hour. She was determined to either get some answers or call it quits, because she couldn't bear this limbo any longer.

She entered the library, her shoes making no sound upon the carpeted floor. She headed straight back for the farthest bookshelf in the corner under the Lumos spelled light globe. There he was, his head bent, dark hair falling forward over his nose, eyes intent upon his parchment.

She halted, drinking in the sight of him, watching his long-fingered hands move with deft grace across the parchment, taking notes. _Oh, Sev. I love you, you stupid fool. But will that be enough?_ Drawing a deep breath, she approached him and stood in front of the table he was working at.

As her shadow fell across his parchment, he glanced up. "Lily!"

"Hello, Sev. We need to talk."

"I'm busy," he said curtly, even as his heart thrilled at the sight of her.

She reached out and shut the book he was taking notes from. "I mean it, Severus. Either we talk— _now—_ or that's it. It's over."

Severus looked at her and he felt as if his heart were cracking in two. He could not bear it if Lily left him, but how could he break his sworn oath?

**A/N: This is the first of my two posted chapters--I decided not to be mean and keep you in suspense after I had divided them up.**


	16. Things Are Not What They Seem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Severus reveals the truth to Lily--can it save their relationship?

"You're giving me an ultimatum?" he said, disbelief and hurt coloring his tone and flashing across his face.

"Yes, because I just can't take it anymore!" she cried, all of her pent up frustration and hurt and anger boiling out of her. She was terrified she would lose him to darkness and all of the rumors and whispers she had been hearing lately in Gryffindor Tower about that particular group of Slytherins had been preying upon her mind for days and driving her insane and she also was unsure if he still loved her, and it all exploded from her like a cauldron of Boil Cure with too many porcupine quills added to it.

"You never _talk_ to me anymore, Severus! Whenever I see you between classes or after them, you're always with that bunch of losers who think people like me are dirt and worship the coming of You-Know-Who! Why are you hanging around them? I thought you detested people like that. But maybe . . .I was wrong. Maybe you detest . . .me," she said, and her voice shook on the last word as if she had a palsy.

Her words struck him like a solid right hook to the jaw and he flinched.

"No, I would never detest you, Lily! You don't understand—"

"Damn straight I don't. Lately all you do is look right through me, like I don't exist, and then go merrily on your way with Avery, Mulciber, and Nott. Having fun tormenting some M-Mudbloods are you? What the hell happened to you, Sev? Ever since you came back from Grimmauld Place, it's like you're a different person—one that I don't even know." There were tears in her eyes now, but she blinked them away fiercely.

"I know. I'm sorry—"

"Don't apologize. Tell me _why_."

He glanced away, his mind racing. _Oh Merlin, how can I explain . . .? I promised Dumbledore, but if I don't tell her **something** , I risk losing her forever. I won't have it. Nothing is worth that._

He cleared his throat. "Look, I can't tell you everything, Lily. I wish like hell I could, but—"

"Why not?" she interrupted. "Is it because you don't trust me?"

"No, it's because I'm . . .under oath."

She gaped at him. "Under oath to whom?"

"Dumbledore. You have to trust me, Lily. Everything I do . . .is orders from him."

" _WHAT?_ " she shrieked. "Dumbledore told you to associate with those arseholes and you _agreed_?"

"I had to. It's complicated, Lily, and I can't tell you why, but trust me, it was necessary."

"And was it also _necessary_ to totally blow me off, Severus Snape?"

"Lily, please . . .I had to look like I belonged . . .and being friends with you doesn't fit . . .I never intended to hurt you . . .everything I said to you on the train was a lie . . .The kiss was the only real thing."

"I don't know if I believe you."

"I swear by my magic that it's true." He snapped. "Ask Dumbledore," he cried, knowing as soon as the words left his mouth that it was fruitless. Dumbledore would not answer her questions, not unless he had a damn good reason to.

"Oh, right. That's a good one. Do you think I'm stupid? Why don't you quit lying and tell me the truth, Severus?"

"I'm not lying, dammit!" he flared.

"You expect me to believe that our Headmaster—You Know Who's greatest _enemy_ —is encouraging you to become a stinking turd-eating follower of Old Dark and Slimy?"

"Yes!" Severus shouted. "Dumbledore isn't the wonderful pure nice old wizard he makes himself out to be, believe me! He's out filling his own agenda, and his sole purpose is to bring down the bloody Dark Lord any way he can. Trust me, Lily."

She bit her lip hard. She wanted to, so very much, and yet . . .doubt slithered into her mind and coiled silently in a corner, whispering. "Why should I trust you when you don't trust me, Severus?"

"What are you talking about?"

"My vision, idiot! The one I told you about on the train. The one you said might just be a "product of my imagination!" _That_ vision!"

"I . . .I didn't mean that! I believed you."

"Then why did you say what you said?"

"Because I was stupid, all right? I was trying to protect you and so I acted like I didn't think your vision was real."

"In the name of Merlin, Severus, why?"

"Things aren't always what they seem, Lily. You always trusted me before. Trust me now."

"I . . .don't know if I can."

"You _have_ to!" he cried, horrified.

"Don't you _dare_ tell me what to do, Severus! You threw me over for those bloody Death Eater wanna-be's! I'm beginning to think Potter was right about you."

He felt as if she had just stabbed him in the gut with a blunt object. "Potter! You'd believe that arrogant prick over me? Damn you, Lily! What the hell happened to _you_?"

"My best friend turned into a damn Death Eater, that's what!"

He threw up his hands. "Listen to what you're saying, Lily! I'm not a Death Eater. Things aren't what they seem."

"You're right. They're probably worse." Abruptly, she turned and ran from the library, muffling her sobs in her sleeve.

"LILY!" Severus shouted, getting to his feet so quickly he knocked over his chair. He made as if to follow her, but his foot tangled in the strap of his bag and he tripped, slamming into the table, bruising his hip and sending all of his homework and his inkwell crashing to the floor.

"Come back, Lily!"

She did not slow, did not even glance back.

He felt his heart shatter into a million pieces. _No, please . . ._

He yanked his foot free of his bag and started after her, only to be halted by the outraged figure of Madam Pince, the librarian, huffing and puffing like an outraged Chinese Fireball. "Mr. Snape! What is the meaning of this—this unseemly behavior? Shouting and knocking things about like a two-year-old is not behavior I permit in my library! This is not the Quidditch pitch!"

He went to move past her, but she grabbed him firmly by the ear and yanked him about. "Oh no you don't , boy! Look at that!" one finger stabbed at the slowly spreading puddle of ink all over the carpet. "Ink all over my clean carpet. What have you to say for yourself, young man?"

 _Shut up and get out of my way!_ He longed to howl, but years of keeping his mouth shut in front of authority figures like his father held him mute. He swallowed sharply as he saw Lily's slender form disappear out of the door. And probably out of his life as well. He felt himself slowly sinking into the pit of despair.

"Well, Mr. Snape? I'm waiting."

"Sorry, Madam Pince," he said listlessly.

"Indeed, and you shall be writing lines for me and scrubbing that stain out of my carpet, young man, this instant!" She waved her wand and a large bucket of water and a scrub brush appeared. She released his ear and pointed to the bucket. "You may begin."

Severus clenched his jaw. The last thing he wanted was to be scrubbing anything. But he wasn't in the habit of defying authority figures and the librarian had a right to be angry with him. He had behaved as juvenilely as Potter or Black. "Yes, ma'am."

She sniffed and muttered, "You're lucky I'm in a good mood or else I'd take points. I'm surprised at you, Severus Snape. You could have ruined my books, splashing ink about like that so carelessly, or tipped over a bookshelf . . ." She gave him another frown before she strode off to the front of the library to chastise a bunch of Hufflepuffs that had come in yelling about some Quidditch game on the Wizarding Wireless.

Severus knelt to scrub at the huge blot, wishing right then that a bookshelf _had_ toppled over . . .and squashed him flat, so he wouldn't have to live with the fact that Lily no longer trusted him . . .or loved him either.

A single tear slipped down his pale cheek and fell unnoticed onto the ink blot.

Lily was so blinded by tears that she hardly saw the corridor. It blurred and wavered in her vision like her reflection in a fun house mirror. She could not believe how things had spiraled out of control, her temper was still sparking, she felt utterly wretched and yet a part of her was screaming that she should trust Severus. Another part of her was clamoring that he had betrayed her by hanging out with the worst bunch of bigots in the school and yet another part of her just wanted to curl up somewhere in a corner and bawl her eyes out.

She was so intent upon her own inner misery that she failed to notice the three Marauders returning from their trip to Hogsmeade and banged right into Peter, nearly knocking him down. "Oh!"

"Oy, Evans! What's with nearly running over my best mate?" queried James. "Want to borrow my glasses, hon?" He tugged off his specs and proffered them to her on the end of his finger.

"Sorry! Excuse me!" Lily sniffled, knowing that if she stayed one minute longer she would end up breaking down totally.

She bolted down the corridor, heading for the relative safety of her room.

"What's up with her?" James asked Sirius.

Sirius shrugged. "Dunno, James, but I think she might have been crying."

"Really? What for?"

"She's a girl, they bawl at the drop of a hat. Maybe Snivellus dumped her or something."

James gritted his teeth. "If he's hurt her, I'll kill him. Or at least I'll make him wish he was dead."

"Good idea, James," squeaked Peter. He beamed up at his idol. "Can we get back to our room now? I need to study for my Transfiguration test."

"Peter, you sound like boring old Remus," Sirius groused. "Hey, James, what do you say to a little stroll down by the lake?"

James considered. "Nah. Let's play some Exploding Snap instead."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Okay, mate. That's loads better than doing homework."

The three continued onward to Gryffindor Tower.

Severus had finished cleaning up the ink blot and writing _I will not be loud and obnoxious in the library_ fifty times by half past nine, and as soon as he had finished, he practically dashed out the door. He paused in the corridor, trying to decide where Lily might have gone. There were really only two places—the lake and her dorm. He raced out of the castle, deciding to search the lake shore first.

But their little secret place was empty and that left Gryffindor Tower—a place where no Slytherin trod unless they were pranking someone from that House or had a death wish. Or were desperate. Severus was very desperate. He headed up the stairs to the seventh floor and proceeded to station himself outside the Gryffindor portrait hole.

He would stay out here all night if he had to, just to make sure he caught Lily when she came out for class. It wouldn't be the first time he had done something like that. When he was nine, he had hidden in her treehouse all night, afraid to go home for fear his father might kill him for accidentally setting his last pack of cigarettes on fire with magic. Lily had discovered him the next morning, huddled in a ball next to the chest of snacks inside the treehouse, she had gone in to fetch a book she had left behind and found her friend instead.

Severus settled down against the wall, his arms curled over his knees, and waited.

A few Gryffindor late-nighters cast him irritated or puzzled glances as they walked into the portrait hole, and a few of them growled at him to go the hell back to the dungeon and quit sliming up the hallway.

Severus ignored them all and practiced the art of becoming a chameleon.

He heard the clock in the Entrance Hall chime the eleventh hour and knew he was now in violation of curfew, even for a prefect. But he didn't care. Let Slughorn give him detention, take away his prefect badge. Nothing mattered anymore except that he speak with Lily and convince her to trust him.

_When she comes out, I'll take her to Dumbledore. Should have done that from the first. Stupid git, Severus! Let the old man explain the truth to her._

He leaned his head against the wall, determined to stay awake all night. An hour passed, then two, then three. But even Severus's iron determination was no match for the lure of sleep, and he eventually began to doze and finally he put his head on his knees and slept.

Lily spent the night sniffling and sobbing into her pillow, unable to sleep. Her mind kept conjuring up visions of Severus's face . . .the way his hair fell over to the side and in front of his eyes in that endearing curtain that he used to keep people he disliked at bay. But he never did that with her. He had always tossed his hair back with a quick flick and stared directly at her. His eyes were always shining when he saw her, until tonight, when they had dimmed with sorrow and hurt.

_Trust me, Lily._

His words echoed in her head, over and over until she thought she would go mad.

_I want to. But how can I?_

She grabbed another tissue from beside her and mopped her eyes, which she was sure were red, blotchy, and swollen. She hated it when she cried, it made her look a fright and she always ended up with a stuffed up nose and an aching head. Like now.

_Things aren't what they seem._

She closed her eyes, wishing she didn't see Severus in her mind everytime she did so. She recalled the way he had kissed her, how it had made her feel incredible, the way his arms had felt about her, cradling her and making her feel cherished and safe.

When had it started to go wrong? And how could she get it back?

_Trust me, Lily._

She buried her face in the pillow.

She started thinking about what he had said, about how Dumbledore was the one who had ordered him to become friends with Death Eater sympathizers. Somehow she couldn't imagine the greatest wizard of the age, the Headmaster who was also Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamut, as putting a student in harm's way. It was like learning that Father Christmas hated children. Surely the jolly old wizard couldn't have knowingly sent Severus into that pack of jackals? He was a Gryffindor and Gryffindors protected those who needed it. At least she had always thought so.

But Severus had insisted he was not lying.

_Things aren't what they seem._

Even Regulus had said that to her.

 _Three together shall walk the paths of night_ . . . _Be swift, be cunning, and be steadfast and you shall never be destroyed. Trust in yourselves and each other and the dark will not triumph._

The words of her vision echoed in her head. She had been so certain when she had dreamed it that it had been prophecy, not a garden variety dream. They had all been together in her dream. But how could it come about if two of them didn't believe in it? Somehow _, I must make them believe. Only I don't know how. I never had to convince Severus before, he always believed me. Oh Merlin, I love him so much . . .but dare I trust him? Trust in yourselves and each other . . ._

She had never doubted her mercurial Sight before. Or her best friend. And he had seemed so torn . . .as if he was fighting some kind of bond . . .she knew how much he valued his word. He had sworn on his magic that he was telling the truth, and that wasn't an oath most wizards took lightly.

She spent the entire night agonizing over whether or not to trust him, hating the doubt that plagued her, until at last she drifted into an uneasy sleep near dawn.

Severus woke to a foot nudging his ankle.

"Hey, Snape, what's the big idea, falling asleep outside our doorstep?" queried Cindy Graves. "Did your roomie kick you out?"

Severus rubbed his eyes blearily, he now had a crick in his neck. "Huh? Oh, it's you, Cindy. I . . .need to speak to Lily. Could you tell her to come out here?" Then he added, "Please."

"She was really upset last night, Snape. You two have a fight or what?"

"That's none of your business. Just tell her I'm here, okay?"

"Don't get pushy, Snape. I'm not sure she wants to hear what you've got to say."

"Well, your last name's not Evans, now is it?" he said testily.

"Did you sleep out here all night?"

"What's it to you if I did?"

She eyed him speculatively. "Okay, Snape. I'll tell her. But only because I don't want to see you get your skinny arse kicked if the Marauders find out you're lurking out here."

Severus snorted. "Like I couldn't take them down myself." He made a shooing motion with one hand. "Well? What are you waiting for—Christmas?"

"Always," she snickered, then went inside the portrait hole.

Cindy finally woke Lily by screaming in her ear, "Hey, Evans! It's time to rise and shine, girl! Up and at 'em. Oh and I think Snape spent the night outside the portrait hole waiting to speak to you. Found him there this morning, curled up in a ball."

"Found who?"

"Snape, you dunderhead. Weren't you listening?"

"Yes, but . . .wait, did you just say that Severus spent the _night_ outside the portrait hole?"

"Uh, yeah. And don't even _ask_ me why he'd do such a thing, 'cause I haven't the foggiest idea."

Cindy gaped as her friend leaped up from her bed and dressed herself with a flick of her wand. "You two have a fight or something?"

"In a manner of speaking," Lily sighed. "Tell you all about it later."

She headed down to the common room and from there out the portrait hole.

There was Severus, sitting down with his back against the wall, his hair hanging limply to one side, shadowing his face. He looked exhausted and she knew he probably hadn't had a really comfortable night, anymore than she had.

"Severus."

He lifted his eyes to hers.

"Lily."

"You were right. I should have trusted you. I'm sorry—" she began.

"I should have told you straight off. I'm sorry too."

"I was an idiot."

"And I was an arse."

"I always trusted you before."

"I know. Now I'm asking you to trust me again." Severus rose to his feet in one smooth movement, despite the cramps in his back from sitting against a stone wall all night. "Will you?"

"Do you really believe my vision was a true one?"

"I do. But . . .I don't like it." Severus admitted softly. "It scares me."

"Me too."

"You, the lioness of Gryffindor, afraid?" he mocked softly.

"What, you don't think I can ever be afraid? Sev, I'm afraid of so many things. I'm afraid I'll fail History of Magic because I can't concentrate long enough to stay awake, I'm afraid that with You-Know-Who rising it'll mean that friends of mine might die, I'm afraid my Sight will show me a vision I can't interpret, or worse that I can't bear to come true, but most of all I'm afraid of walking away and never feeling the same way I do when I'm with you."

"And what way is that? Like you want to ditch me because I'm a Death Eater?" he demanded sharply.

"No. Like I want to hold you and never ever let go." Lily whispered and all at once she was hugging him and crying. "Severus, I love you. And even more than that . . .I need you. I always have. When you're with me . . .I'm complete. I don't know how I ever could have forgotten that. I'm sorry I ever called you a Death Eater. Me and my damn temper."

"Do you trust me, Lily?"

"Yes."

He smiled then. "Good. Then come with me."

"Where are we going, Sev? We have class in . . .an hour and fifteen minutes," she said glancing at her watch.

"Plenty of time to visit the Headmaster," Severus said decisively. He handed Lily a handkerchief from the pocket of his robes.

"Dumbledore?"

"You know of another Headmaster?" he teased. "The old man has something to tell you that you need to hear. And you have something to tell him as well. Now blow your nose, you're dripping."

"Yes, Dad," she drawled sarcastically, then did as she was told.

She had just finished wiping her eyes and was considering going back into the dorm for a moment to wash her face when the portrait hole opened and James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter walked through it.

They stopped dead upon seeing Severus and Lily.

"Snape! What are you doing here?" growled Sirius.

"Yeah, you don't belong here, so go back to the dungeons, slimeball," cried Peter, who was bold now that he had his friends about him.

James was about to add his own derogatory remark when he caught sight of Lily's puffy eyes and red face. "Evans, have you been . . .crying?" he asked, stepping closer to the red-haired object of his affection. His eyes narrowed. "You have, haven't you?" He sent a scorching glare at Severus. "What did you do to make her cry, Snape?"

"Mind your own business, Potter," Severus ordered, his teeth clenched.

"She is my business, greasy bat!" spat James. Then he lunged and pinned the skinny boy against the wall, one hand wrapped in his collar. "I want to know what you did to her, Snivellus, because if you hurt her, I'm going to take you out. Got me?"

Severus could only manage a choked gurgle, for James was slowly strangling him with his own tie.

"Let him go, Potter!" Lily shouted, her wand appearing in her fist.

"Not till the bastard tells me what he did to make you cry." He loosened his grip slightly. "Talk, Snivellus."

Severus gagged, gasping for breath.

"I _said_ —let him GO!" Lily shouted, then she pointed her wand at her interfering truculent Housemate and hexed him.

Hair began sprouting from James's ears and down his back, he yelped loudly as his backside suddenly enlarged and a tail sprouted from it. His hands slipped away from Severus and he fell forward on the floor as his fingers fused into hooves. He tried to reach for his wand but it was no longer in his pocket and when he tried to summon it wandlessly, he found his voice didn't work either, and all that came out of his mouth was a loud bray.

"Bloody hell, mate!" Sirius cried, staring at his friend in horror.

James turned his head and stared at his hooves and tail stupidly, then he began to bray and run in circles.

"You're a jackass, James!" Peter wailed.

"How very fitting," gasped Severus, rubbing his abused throat, if it hadn't been so sore he would have burst out laughing. He turned to Lily, who was still glaring at Potter fit to kill. "Brilliant as always, Lily."

"Thanks, Sev. Excuse us, boys," she said coolly. "We have an appointment to keep."

"Where? In bed?" sneered Sirius.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for your filthy mouth, Black!" snapped Severus. "And another twenty for bringing livestock into the castle." He indicated James with a toss of his head. "Plus ten for assaulting a prefect. And detention with Filch for starting a brawl in the corridor, Potter."

"Y-You can't do that, Snape!" sputtered Sirius.

"Watch me." Severus spun away, ignoring the other's protests, head held high, and Lily followed without hesitation. She called over her shoulder, "Tell the jackass when he turns back to ask before he assumes a girl needs help. Because I'm no damsel in distress."

"Got that right," she heard Remus mutter as she walked away. "More like a dragon with a serious anger management problem."

"Uh huh. Snape must be crazy," Peter whined, trembling.

Severus smirked. "I'm crazy, all right. Crazy in love with you, Lily." His hand found hers and together they made their way to Dumbledore's office.

 **Based on the number of reviews I got (thanks!) you all seemed to want Severus to tell Lily the truth . . . so he did, in his own way. And now they will go to Dumbledore** **where he will, hopefully, tell the rest of it. Hope you liked the incorporation of Sev staying outside Gryffindor Tower, which was borrowed from DH, but in my version Sev ends up with Lily.**


	17. Spies Like Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily learns everything from Dumbledore

On the way to the gargoyle statue which guarded the secret entrance to the Headmaster's office, they met Reg, who looked very concerned until he caught sight of his best friends together. Then he halted and gave them a very annoyed frown. "Severus! Holy Merlin, where were you last night? When you didn't come back from the library I thought maybe someone had hexed you or something."

Severus raised an eyebrow at Regulus' disapproving tone. Then he drawled, half-sarcastically, "Sorry, Dad, I wasn't aware I missed my curfew. Calm down, Reg. I'm fine. Lily and I . . .we had some things to discuss."

Regulus's eyes widened. "Like what? Tell me you didn't . . .ah . .umm . . .Never mind!" He turned red.

"It's not what you're thinking, Reg," Lily hastened to say, not wanting him to get the wrong idea about her. "I was angry at Sev and it took awhile for him to convince me to hear him out."

"The whole _night_?"

"Pretty much," she admitted ruefully. "He spent the night in the hallway outside the portrait hole."

"Merlin have mercy!" Reg stared at his friend as if he'd grown an extra arm. "Okay . . .now I really _have_ heard it all. Lily, you better marry him, because for sure he's in love with you, since nobody but a lovestruck fool does such a thing."

Lily chuckled. "I know, Reg. And I am just as crazy about him."

Reg grinned. "Ha! A perfect match! Now, if only I could get Cindy to speak with me." His grin vanished. "But she won't give me the time of day."

"Tell her the truth," Lily urged, dragging Regulus over to a corner next to the gargoyle statue. "Don't lie, Reg, just tell her what you're really up to hanging around those arseholes. That's how Sev convinced me to stay."

Regulus nearly fainted. "Sev! You . . . _told_?"

"I had to, Reg," Severus defended. "Look, come with us to Dumbledore's office, Lily needs to tell him something important and so do I. It concerns you too."

"Huh? Did I miss something? How does your breaking your promise concern me?"

"You'll see. Now come on." Severus grabbed his roommate by the sleeve and towed him over to the gargoyle. "Cherry popsicles," he said, and the gargoyle spun around to reveal the staircase.

All three got on it and the gargoyle slid back into place just as the stairs began to revolve.

"Come in," called the Headmaster cheerily, and the three entered the office.

"Ah, Severus, my boy! How are you doing? Are your NEWTS studies going well?" Dumbledore was seated behind his splendid mahogany desk, with his feet up, so they could all see his striped rainbow socks. "Lily, Regulus! How nice to see you all! Lemon drop?"

"No thank you, sir," Severus declined. "Headmaster, we need to discuss something urgently with you."

Dumbledore sat up, and his eyes lost some of their sparkle. "Indeed? And what would that be?"

He waved the three to seats in front of his desk.

Once they were all seated, Severus said, "Sir, remember that matter we discussed over the summer, when Reg and I met you in the ice cream shop? Well, Lily has something important to tell you about that matter."

He gestured for Lily to continue. She cleared her throat and said, in a quiet firm voice, "Headmaster, I was born with the gift of Sight. I am an oracle, I can see visions in dreams. And what I See Happens. Almost always. A month ago I kept having the same prophetic dream over and over, until I wrote it down. It concerned me, Severus, and Regulus."

Dumbledore looked very intrigued. "Will you tell me this dream, Miss Evans?"

Lily recited the Prophecy of the Three, as she had come to call it to herself. " _Three together shall walk the paths of night, for only by infiltrating the heart of darkness can the dark be defeated. Be swift, be cunning, and be steadfast and you shall never be destroyed. Trust in yourselves and each other and the dark will not triumph. Fail and the dark shall destroy all"_

Both the Headmaster and Regulus looked stunned, and Severus fought to keep from snickering inanely. He had forgotten that Reg knew nothing about Lily's vision, and the look on his friend's face was priceless.

"Three?" Regulus repeated dumbly. "But then that means . . .you must become a spy too, Lily."

She nodded, only to be interrupted by Severus's abrupt, "No! Anything but that! It's too dangerous."

"And what you're doing isn't?" Lily spun on him, her emerald eyes shooting sparks. "Cozying up to the Death Eater kids every day, pretending to be their friend so you can report what they say and do back to Dumbledore? They are cruel and vicious, just like their parents, and if they ever found out you duped them, Severus . . .they might curse you to death. Why is it acceptable for you to risk your life and not me?" she demanded. "And don't give me any piddling reason like because I'm a girl, Severus Snape!"

Severus bit his lip to prevent his temper from taking control over his tongue. _Lily, dammit, why must you be so blasted stubborn! Can't you see that I don't want you to get hurt?_ "Fine! It's not acceptable because I don't want you to get hurt, okay?"

She softened a little at his admission, which she knew was not one he made lightly. "Oh, Sev. You just have to trust me. My visions are almost never wrong and this one . . .I know with everything I am that it must be followed. All of us must face You-Know-Who and his bootlickers and only together will we triumph. Together, Sev. You, Reg, and me."

"But Lily! How can you be a spy when you're a Gryffindor?" sputtered Regulus. He gazed at Dumbledore. "Tell her it's impossible, sir! She's lost her marbles."

Dumbledore pondered for a few more minutes before saying gravely, "While I find Lily's prophecy disturbing, to say the least, I must admit that it seems a valid one. But first I must make certain of it."

"How can you do that, sir?' asked the young oracle.

"I must go to the Hall of Prophecy in the Department of Mysteries. There, every true prophecy uttered by a Seer is recorded at the moment it is spoken. If your vision is true, Miss Evans, the prophecy will be there with your names upon it."

"Can we go with you, sir?" asked Regulus.

"I have no need to see what I already know," Lily said quietly.

"I trust Lily." Severus said. "But you go on and take a look, Reg."

"All right." He looked questioningly at their aging mentor. "May I, Headmaster?"

Dumbledore nodded. Then he held out his arm. "Very well, Regulus. Take hold of my arm, lad. This will only take a moment or two."

Reg grasped the old wizard's purple sleeve and an instant later they vanished.

"How did he _do_ that?" Lily cried, amazed. "Apparition isn't supposed to be possible in Hogwarts."

Severus shrugged. "Maybe for the Headmaster, that doesn't hold true." He clasped Lily's hand in his own, his eyes meeting hers with a deep and abiding worry in their depths. "I wish none of this had to happen. I wish you and I could just be together, and forget all the secrecy and lies and spying. I wish we could say to hell with all of this and go off somewhere and live a normal life." He laughed mockingly, but his laughter was directed at himself. "I sound like an idiot, don't I?"

"No. You sound like someone forced into a role he never wanted to play, but now has to. Sev, I wish the same, but what will be shall be. All we can do is accept it and make the best of it. I promise I'll be careful, Sev. If you'll promise me the same."

"I promise. But I still don't like it. Being a spy is dangerous and dirty work, not like in the movies. It's not like James Bond." He cautioned. "Every time I go to one of their meetings, I'm afraid I might do or say something and blow my cover and get myself killed. But I pledged myself to Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix."

"Why, Sev?"

"Because someone had to watch Reg's back and who better than me?" he replied honestly. "He got compelled into joining and Dumbledore needed a new pair of spies and thought we were perfect because no one would suspect two teenagers, especially Slytherin ones. We both agreed, because we hate Old Tom as much as anyone."

She pursed her lips together and gave _him_ a look of disapproval. "I'm not sure _I_ like that idea, Severus, but I trust that you're old enough to make your own decisions and don't need to ask anyone's permission. I was going to be angry with Dumbledore for forcing you into this position, but now I see that you agreed to it willingly. Won't you give me the same courtesy?"

He heaved a sigh. "I guess so. But even the thought of something happening to you . . .I'd rather die a thousand times over. I know you can take care of yourself, Lil. I know you're not some meek hothouse flower, that you can take down any boy at school if you want to, but . . .all my life I watched while my father hurt my mother and I couldn't do a damn thing. I was too small or too scared or too much of a damn coward. But with you it's different. I don't know if I could stand by and watch you get hurt without doing anything."

"Then I'll just have to make sure I don't put you in that position, Sev," she murmured, her heart aching anew for the torment he had suffered and still did.

"How? A spy has to be objective, Lily, he can't afford to let anything get in the way of his mission."

"And I won't. We'll figure it out. Dumbledore probably has some idea of how it will work. All for one, Sev."

"And one for all," he recited. "Damn _Three Musketeers_!"

Before they could speak further, Dumbledore and Regulus returned. Reg looked slightly green, he had never done well with Sidelong Apparition, but the shocked disbelief was gone from his features.

"It's a true prophecy," he mumbled. "I saw it."

"As did I," Dumbledore said gravely. "You have a true gift, Lily, to predict accurately at such a young age. But then, they say oracles are born, not made." He seated himself behind the desk again and poured a cup of tea from the steaming pot on the tray floating next to the desk. "Tea, anyone?"

They all accepted this time, and while the tea settled their nerves, Severus addressed the issue of Lily joining the Order of the Phoenix and becoming a spy like he and his best friend were. "I just don't see how it could work when everyone knows she is a Gryffindor. And a Muggleborn."

"Very true, Severus." Dumbledore agreed. "Lily as she is now could never serve as an agent. But what if Lily were no longer herself?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Regulus asked.

"It means I'm going to have to disguise myself," Lily told him, her voice catching briefly with excitement. "Right, sir?"

"Yes, my girl. You are quite correct. Once again, I must ask you children to do the work of grown men and women. It would appear that Fate has chosen you for a special destiny, and far be it for me to tempt Fate." The Headmaster looked suddenly sad. "I may wish it were not necessary, but there it is. In order for Lily to help with your covert operations, she must become another person entirely, a person who is not connected to you two save by acquaintance only. I will teach you how to cast Glamour Charms, my girl, that cannot be removed except by yourself or in the event of, Merlin forbid—your untimely death. Those combined with Polyjuice Potion should work."

"Polyjuice Potion? But who would I become?" Lily queried.

"I have here the hair of someone who was once very dear to me, someone who no one alive now remembers." Dumbledore said quietly. He removed a small silver filigree box from the top drawer of his desk, it was slim and about the size of a mirror compact. He opened it and inside was several locks of silvery blond hair. "This hair belonged to my little sister, Ariana. She died when she was about your age, Lily. Use her hair in your potion and you shall become her doppelganger for a time. It is a disguise that no one will be able to penetrate save myself and my brother Aberforth. But I shall inform Abe of our little deception, he is an Order member too, and then we must come up with an identity for you."

"It should be something simple, that you can remember easily," Reg said.

"Quite right, Mr. Black. The more complex a lie, the easier it is to slip up and be caught out." Dumbledore advised. "But first, I must ask you to swear the same oath, Miss Evans, that Severus and Regulus have."

Once Lily had sworn the requisite oath to the Order, the Headmaster said, "I think it would be safest if you were an orphan, your parents purebloods who died of wizard cholera when you were very young. You were raised by foster families until you were of age to attend Hogwarts, then you were Sorted into Ravenclaw. I shall teach all of you a Memory Altering Charm so you can use it upon the young Death Eaters, it is a form of wandless magic, and change their memory so they will recall Lily's new persona as a classmate of theirs. I want your word that you will use it only upon them for that purpose, and not upon anyone else unless it is a matter of life and death."

The look he gave them was quite stern and they all promised they would do as he said.

"You may tell the others that you felt oppressed by your peers and wanted to show them that you were stronger than they were and so you joined Voldemort's side. He loves corrupting vulnerable and bitter young adolescents. Is that satisfactory to you?"

Lily nodded. "But what shall I call myself?"

All of them thought hard.

Then Severus said, "Lily, wasn't your grandmother's name Zoey? Why not use her name as your alias? You can remember it easily."

"Yes. That's a great idea."

"And for your surname, why not the name of a poisonous magical spider?" Dumbledore asked. "A nightdusk is very venomous. One bite can kill."

Lily grinned. "I like it. Zoey Nightdusk."

"Good. That's settled then. Lily, I want you to meet me here at 7 PM every Monday and Thursday so I can teach you the Glamour charm. As a matter of fact, perhaps I should teach all of you, but at different times. Severus, you and Regulus should come on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The Order meets every Friday evening, but you are not required to attend. I shall keep you informed of what is discussed. For now, please concentrate on your studies, and at the next meeting of your new friends, Severus, you can introduce Zoey."

"All right. Lucius usually has a meeting once a month."

"That should be enough for you to learn what you need to know," said the Headmaster. "I owe you three a great debt and wish you the best, by Merlin's holy grace. What you learn today may well save your lives and the lives of your friends and family tomorrow."

"Speaking of my family, sir, may I tell them what I am doing?"Lily asked.

"I do not think that is wise, child. What you do not know cannot be tortured out of you."

"I wouldn't tell my parents, they would never understand," Lily said swiftly. "But what about my sister? She already knows about the prophecy, I told it to her first."

The old man considered for a long moment. "Very well. You may tell your sister a very brief version, nothing too detailed. And it will be your responsibility to make certain she does not betray you inadvertently."

"I will, sir."

"What about me telling Cindy?" Reg asked. "I'll make sure she won't say anything. Otherwise I might lose her, because she thinks I've become a Death Eater. Fair's fair, Headmaster."

Dumbledore looked slightly annoyed. But he acquiesced to Reg's request. "Very well. But no one else, mind. The more people who know your agenda the more risk you have of your secret being leaked out. Secrecy is your greatest ally."

"We understand, sir," Regulus reassured him. "I can trust Cindy."

"And I can trust Petunia," Lily said.

Severus checked his watch. "It's nearly time for class."

"Drat! We missed breakfast and I'm starving!" moaned Reg.

Dumbledore clapped his hands and a large tray filled with everything from porridge to bacon omelets and creamed chipped beef on toast appeared on the table in front of them. For drinks there was hot cocoa, pumpkin juice, and orange juice. "Here you go, children. Take your time and eat, don't rush. I shall give you all a pass if you need one." He waved his wand and three passes signed by him popped up in their laps. "Now, I must go and speak with Professor McGonagall. Don't worry about clearing up, the house elves will see to it. I shall see you later."

And with that, he departed, leaving the three newly inducted spies to eat a very pleasant and filling breakfast, during which Severus and Regulus filled Lily in on the Sons of the Iron Mask.

"Although, they won't be able to call themselves that for much longer," Regulus predicted. "Because rumor has it that Bellatrix and Narcissa, my cousins, want to join and so do a few other girls. Which is why no one will remark if you join as Zoey."

"They could change their name to The Children of the Iron Mask," Severus said. Then he went over the list of members and the initiation ceremony, which he said Dumbledore could reverse the effects of.

When they had stuffed themselves, in the case of Reg and Lily, Severus never ate as much since he was used to small portions, they took their passes and bookbags and left the office, each heading to their respective classes, having promised to meet in the library afterwards.


	18. We Were Only Foolin'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The infamous werewolf prank with a twist

In the weeks that followed, Dumbledore tutored all three young spies in the art of Glamour casting, an ancient art that used to be a wizard's stock in trade long ago, and enabled them to blend in with the Muggle world when necessary. The Glamour was a dying art, however, as more and more modern wizards and witches relied on Polyjuice potion or the fact that all they needed to do was to wear Muggle clothes to walk about unnoticed. And getting some was cheap. Back in the days of medieval Britain, all the clothing was made by hand and made specifically for a person's station—like noble and servant and freeman. You only had recourse to fine clothing if you had money and most wizards didn't, since they lived upon the fringes of Muggle society, not daring to mingle too freely, for fear of being accused of witchcraft and burned or drowned. So the Glamour Charm was a very convenient method of disguising yourself at a moment's notice.

Dumbledore showed them how to weave a Glamour so tight that it clung like a second skin, and Lily, who had a gift for charms, soon mastered the spell thoroughly, able to hold the spell even when she wasn't consciously concentrating, even through extreme emotional upheaval and physical attacks. Which was good, because it meant that she wouldn't need to worry about a slipped Glamour if she happened to get in a fight.

Severus also proved adept, and Reg was like a chameleon, able to blend in with anything.

In addition to that, they were also taking NEWT level classes and discussing possible career options with their House Heads. Lily expressed an interest in getting a job as a Charms professor, though she knew well that she wouldn't teach while she was doing undercover work. Severus wanted to be a Potions Master. Regulus was considering going for a Healer, he had all the brains to be one and compassion as well, but feared he wouldn't be able to concentrate upon his studies and spying at the same time.

He also had managed to tell Cindy the real reason he had done an about-face and was hanging around the dregs of the school, or at least the ones with the worst reputations. She was sympathetic to his plight afterwards and said she admired his courage and daring. He swore her to secrecy.

"I just wish there were some way to get it through my boneheaded brother's skull that I'm not really going dark," Regulus remarked to his roommate one night before going to sleep. He was sitting atop his bed, crosslegged, looking very Zen, but his hazel eyes belied his calm posture. "But how can I, when I'm forbidden to tell him the reason why I've up and joined the Death Eater wannabes?"

Severus looked up from where he was sprawled on his stomach, reading a detective novel, he indulged himself by reading a chapter or two before bed each night, unless he was studying for an exam. He put a finger in the book to hold his place and eyed Reg sympathetically. "I wish I could help you, Reg. But you know as well as I do that Sirius regards me as the devil incarnate and thinks it's because of me that you've turned down the dark path. He would never believe me if I told him things weren't what they seemed and to trust you."

"I know. It sucks. I mean, sure, we've always scrapped, what brothers don't? But this time . . .it's different. Sometimes . . .sometimes he looks at me like he hates me . . .really _hates_ me." Reg but his lower lip. "Last time he saw me, he threatened to write to our parents if I didn't quit hanging about Avery and Nott and their set. I told him to butt out and mind his own business. Maybe I shouldn't have, but what else could I do?"

"Do you think he would really do what he said?"

"I don't know. One never knows with Sirius. Sometimes he's pure bluff, but other times . . .And it would just kill my mother and father if they thought I was following the dark road. I know they're purebloods and all, but Dad's an Auror, he hunts down dark wizards. What if, Merlin forbid, he had to hunt _me_ down? And I don't even want to think of what it would do to Mum . . .she would never forgive me. So I can't let them know. Not ever. Not till this bloody war is done."

"I know. My mother would be horrified if she ever guessed what I was really doing. She says You-Know-Who is anathema to all of us, a disease that needs to be eradicated from our society. Heaven help me if she ever thought I was becoming one of his followers . . ." Severus shuddered just imagining his mother's anger and disappointment. "I think she would disown me."

"Which means we're just going to have to be careful until we finish school and come of age," Reg said gloomily. "Then maybe you and I could get a place together and we wouldn't need to worry about anyone finding out about our double lives. Unless you and Lily marry first."

Severus grinned at the idea of Lily and he being married. That would be a dream come true. He just wished that his dreams didn't have a habit of becoming nightmares sometimes. Being a spy was going to test him to the limit and he didn't know how he was going to maintain a lasting relationship with Lily while under that kind of pressure. But he would not give her up. Not over this, or anything. He simply had to trust in the prophecy and his love for her. That would be enough—had to be enough—to see him through this.

He looked at Regulus again and saw the strain upon his face and the sadness in his eyes and said softly, "Reg, if we do get married, and believe me I plan to, you can come and stay with us."

"Sev, I couldn't do that. You'd be newlyweds and I'd be . . .in the way. Like a fake Knut or something."

"If you need to, Reg, you're always welcome in my home. Wherever that home may be," Severus said firmly. "You're like my family, little brother."

Reg coughed awkwardly and muttered a thank you.

"Sirius still on your back then?"

"Yeah. But at least he's not trying to hex me anymore since Professor Slughorn caught him that time and gave him detention. Made him pickle some toad ovaries or something I think. Gross! I think afterwards my brother spent an hour puking up his guts."

"Serves him right for being such an idiot and hurting his own brother." Severus snorted. "I don't know what you can do about him, Reg, except maybe ignore him."

"Mmmhmm . . ." Reg made a noncommittal noise of agreement. It upset him deeply that he could not come clean with his family about his true role as Dumbledore's agent, but he had known from the beginning that secrecy would be his top priority. He was lucky that Dumbledore had agreed to let him tell Cindy, so at least he had three people who he could speak with.

 _Suck it up, Black. We all have to make sacrifices in this war. This is the first of many,_ he told himself firmly. He just wished someone had warned him how hard it would be. He shook his head and doused his lamp and drew the bed hangings about his bed, seeking solace in sleep.

Eventually, Lucius summoned them to another meeting, sending a letter around to both Reg and Severus. They quietly informed Lily, Dumbledore, and Cindy. Regulus had agreed to always inform Cindy when he went to a meeting, either in person or a letter, so just in case something happened, she could alert the rest of the Order.

For the first time, Lily Polyjuiced herself into the shape of Dumbledore's long-deceased sister, Ariana. The sight of the fragile-looking blond-haired girl standing before him brought tears to the old wizard's eyes. Ariana had had cornflower colored eyes and a sweet heart-shaped face and a rosebud mouth. When she had been alive, he had adored his baby sister, and seeing Lily assume her shape made old memories come rushing back.

"You look . . .it is as if her ghost has come back . . ." Albus muttered, shaking his head. "Forgive me, I am an old man rambling . . .You are now ready to go on your first mission, Zoey Nightdusk. May Merlin and fate watch over you."

Lily smiled. "Thank you, sir."

Then she turned and left the office, her heart beating crazily in her chest.

She met Severus and Regulus in Hogsmeade, near the Shrieking Shack, because hardly anyone ever went over there, it was rumored to be the most haunted place in Britain. Severus, who wore a long hooded cloak so no one would catch sight of his rather distinctive profile, immediately took her in his arms, all of his protective instincts flaring to life. In this new form as "Zoey Nightdusk" she looked the epitome of the fragile damsel, even though he knew she was anything but, and he could not help himself. Then too, he could see that she was nervous and scared, try though she did to hide it.

So he gathered her close and pressed her into his chest, whispering, "I'm here, little oracle."

"Sev, I'm scared. I feel like I'm walking into a nest of poisonous runespoors."

She nestled into his arms, listening to the steady beat of his heart, and felt some of her initial fear abate.

One hand slipped up and stroked her fine blond tresses, so utterly different from her usual bright ember-colored hair. "You are, but I'll be right beside you. Reg too. Remember your vision, Lily. Together we shall triumph."

"You're right," she said, gathering all of her courage. She was not alone and that was everything. "All right." She pushed away the fluttering panic and squared her shoulders. "Where is this meeting?"

"We're to Floo to Diagon Alley and meet in Borgin and Burkes," Reg answered. "Lucius will meet us there. Then we'll introduce him to you, Zoey."

"Let's go," Severus said, then led the way back to the Hogs Head.

Lucius seemed to take Lily's recruitment in stride, but then he informed Severus and Regulus that their newest acolyte had to go with Bellatrix, Narcissa, and several other girls to have their own meeting separately. "Witches," he snorted. "You know how they are. Want their own little secret ritual and whatever. Probably planning to get drunk and ogle naked men in Staffs of Fire," Lucius smirked, naming a popular wizarding magazine similar to Muggle Playgirl. "Come. We have a few new members to initiate tonight, you can reminisce with your pretty little witchlet later."

He eyed "Zoey" up and down, leering at her.

Severus shot him a look that could have slain a dragon and put an arm about her before he could think better of it.

Lucius laughed. "Ah. So that's how it is. Finally came to your senses then and stopped seeing that Mudblood Evans, have you?"

Severus said nothing, just continued to glare, cursing himself for his overprotectiveness.

Lucius chuckled. "Very well, I'll leave her be, since you've already staked a claim, Snape. But I do prefer blonds." His eyes roamed over "Zoey" again, before he spun about and pointed to a group of witches. "Over there, Zoey. Follow them."

He started walking to the other Sons of the Iron Mask who waited beside the fireplace in the disreputable shop.

As he did so, Lily whispered the Memory Altering Charm, making Lucius forget he didn't really know Zoey Nightdusk, and also altering his memory of Severus holding her. She didn't want to have to start "breaking up" with Severus at school because Lucius suspected Severus had feelings for "Zoey."

Then she stepped away from Severus and whispered, "Better go. I'll be fine."

"You sure?" he whispered back.

"Yes. Go."

Severus sighed and departed, reluctantly.

Lily walked in the opposite direction, to join the group of seven girls, casting the Memory Altering Charm upon each of them as she introduced herself to them, so they would recall her being at school with them, Sorted into Ravenclaw. She disliked casting the spell, it made her feel as if she were playing God with people's minds, but she knew it was necessary for her to pull off her ruse and so she just gritted her teeth and performed the spell.

"We'll be going to Luc's mansion, just so you know, but the north garden, so we can have more privacy," Narcissa told her. "It's better that way. Some of the boys are . . .not very well-bred and they tend to get very rowdy during the initiations."

"What she means is they get drunk and belch and fart and try and grope anything with breasts," Bellatrix translated bluntly. "After the last time, when I had to kick that MacNair's balls up his arse for trying to rip off my dress, we decided to have our own meeting away from the men. Good thing too, because a little thing like you wouldn't last two seconds with some of those boys when they've had too much to drink."

Lily eyed Bellatrix coolly. "Don't worry about me, Black. I can take care of myself."

"Good. We'll wait for the boys to finish using the fire, then it'll be our turn."

Lily supposed the separate meetings were an unlooked for blessing, because if any guy had tried to touch her in front of Severus, he would have probably killed them, or at least hexed them till they begged for mercy. She began to speak to Narcissa, asking her about Malfoy Manor, trying to gather as much information as she could about Lucius.

"So . . .how did it go?" Regulus asked when they had all Flooed back to the Hogs Head. "Did the witches make you drink some kind of sick drink too for your initiation?" He had just placed up a Silencing Charm so they could not be overheard.

"No. They waved some incense over me and anointed my forehead with some kind of ashes and herbs and made me swear to be true to them, but there was no drink like what you described. Afterward we talked a bit about obligations of family and drank some white wine or butterbeer and Bellatrix gave a speech about the glories of serving He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named—she clearly worships him—and that was all. No orgies or anything like that."

Severus exhaled sharply in relief. "Good. Now let's go back to the castle. We meed to speak with the Headmaster and then I'm going to take a shower. Hanging around Lucius and his lackeys always makes me feel filthy, like I went swimming in a cesspool."

"Me too," Regulus said, and Lily nodded.

Together they headed back to school.

_November 23rd_

_Quidditch pitch:_

James caught the red Quaffle easily, and tucked it under his arm. Then he cast a quick look behind him to scope out which of his teammates was coming after him, they were practicing for the next game against Slytherin and James was hoping to trounce the serpents' butts, especially Siri's brother, who played Seeker and was fast becoming a legend in the air. Black the Blur was his nickname and James was highly jealous of the young Seeker because he didn't think it was right for one who skirted the edges of dark wizardry to be born with such a gift for flying.

He circled round the pitch, neatly avoiding his teammate Arnold Asher's attempt to blindside him and snatch back the Quaffle. Ducking a low flying Bludger, James shot forward and tossed the Quaffle with deadly accuracy towards the goal.

The Keeper, Miles Davenport, tried to snag it, but slipped and the Quaffle went in.

"Bullseye, Jamie!" cheered Alicia Weatherby from the stands, she was James's latest conquest and came to watch him play rain or shine. She was now clapping and cheering.

James turned and beamed at her, loving the attention and applause, as always. The attention was like a drug, it gave him a rush and got his adrenaline pumping, he could never seem to get enough of it. The louder the crowd cheered and chanted his name, the better he performed.

He flew a victory lap, waving at the pretty blond girl, who was a fourth-year Gryffindor.

He liked Alicia, she was good for him, always thrilled to be around him, never fought and argued the way Lily always did . . .he checked suddenly as his eyes caught sight of a familiar redhead walking down near the lake, beside an all too familiar greasy-haired git. James' teeth clenched. Even now, after three months, he still hated the fact that Lily had chosen that worm Snivellus over him. It stuck in his craw like a chicken bone.

His eyes bored into the couple, unable to help himself, and his hand itched to grab his wand and hex that damn Slytherin to the dark side of the moon, the backside of beyond, anywhere Lily wasn't. _Lily, I will never understand why you chose him—a Death Eater if there ever was one—over me. How could you be attracted to that scummy snake who never washes his hair and who flirts with darkness? How?_

Hands clenched into white knuckled fists, he abruptly turned his broom and shot across the pitch, pulling up in the center of the pitch. He was breathing hard and his hazel eyes were burning with raw jealousy and longing. So he did the only thing he could to ease the surging emotions, he began to play Quidditch hard and fast, using the game to get rid of all of his tension and frustration.

By the time practice was over, he was dripping with sweat, but at least he wasn't entertaining thoughts of shoving Snivelly headfirst into a cauldron. Mostly.

He headed for the showers, grateful once again for the distraction.

"Earth to James!" Sirius called, rapping on James's head lightly with his wand. "Whatcha thinking about, Prongs?"

"Give you two guesses, Padfoot," the Chaser answered, propping his chin up on a fist.

They were all in a corner of their common room, sprawled in comfy chairs and James had zoned out for a moment. Peter was idly drawing weird shapes in the air with a Smoke Charm and Remus, who looked pale and drawn, was sipping a hot cocoa, huddled beneath a large maroon blanket. Several of his Housemates had asked if he were coming down with something.

"Maybe you ought to let Pomfrey scan you, mate," suggested Frank Longbottom. "Y'look ruddy awful."

But Remus only shook his head. "It's just a cold, I'll be over it in a few days."

His friends exchanged knowing glances. Tomorrow was the night of the full moon, hence Remus's sickly appearance. The werewolf always got sick before he was about to transform, it was how the beginnings of the curse manifested.

"Time to pay a visit to the old shack," Peter squeaked softly after Frank had left.

The other three nodded. They had discovered Remus's awful secret during fourth year, but had only learned how to become Animagi the following year. The three had discovered that they could help Remus control the wolf beast a bit if they transformed with him and hunted and ran with him in the forest.

Dumbledore had created a secret passage underneath the Whomping Willow to the Shrieking Shack for Remus to use when he had to transform, as there was no cure for lycanthropy. As werewolf, Remus lost his human mind and became a slavering insane beast, starving and vicious. But once he had fed, he calmed and it became safe for his friends to escort him across the grounds in the moonlight.

Sirius regarded it as a great lark, slipping the werewolf free right under the noses of their teachers and the Headmaster, and with the added benefit of being Animagi. James had nicked the copy of _Magical Shapeshifters: A Beginner's Guide_ from McGonagall's office when he had detention with her, and then proceeded to read it until he had master the Animagus transformation. Once he had found his Animagus form, which had taken three days of intense meditation and concentration, he had taught Sirius and Peter.

And now the Marauders were even stronger than ever.

"So . . .let me guess. You were thinking about either a certain redhead or the next Quidditch match," Sirius said. "And if I wanted to bet money, I'd say it's the first one. Am I right?"

"Yes, damn it!" James snarled, suddenly irritated with his best friend.

"Hey, no need to take your frustration out on me, mate," Sirius held up his hands jokingly. "I know it sucks to see the object of your affection walking out with a loser like Snape, but what can you do about it? He's a slick tongued bastard, look how he led my little brother down the dark path."

"I don't think Regulus needed to be led, he was already headed there," Peter remarked.

Now it was Sirius's turn to bristle and snarl. "Be quiet, Wormtail! My little brother was coaxed into hanging around those scum by his roommate, Severus bloody Snape! He practically worships that bloody bounder. Thinks he's the greatest wizard since Merlin." Sirius made a derisive noise. "Ha! All he can do is brew potions and make his hair extra greasy."

Remus yawned and rose to his feet, he was tired and achy. "I'm for bed, guys. See you tomorrow . . .night."

"G'night, Moony," James said, echoed by the other Marauders.

Remus climbed wearily up the stairs and into bed, feeling horrible.

Back in the common room, Sirius continued to rant on about Snape corrupting Regulus and James agreed with him, saying suddenly, "If only there were a way to get rid of the damn kid."

"Get rid of him how?" Sirius asked in a soft voice.

"Like make him sick enough to go home for the rest of the term, I don't know. If he were gone, then maybe Lily would forget him and see me instead."

"Still got a thing for old Evans, huh?" Peter chortled. "What's wrong with Alicia? She's a looker, she is."

"Nothing. But . . .she's not Lily," James sighed.

"Potter, you're obsessed," Sirius teased lightly.

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"So . . .what could we do to Snivelly to make him up and leave?"

Peter's nose twitched. "What if we . . .scared him to death?"

Sirius eyed him. "Go on. What's that devious brain of yours thinking up now, Wormtail?"

Peter's sallow face and pointed chin quivered and then he leaned forward and said, "Tomorrow's the full moon. What if we lured old Snivellus to the Shack and let him meet the big bad wolf? You know what Moony looks like when he first transforms, right? All freaky and snarling. We could shove him in the tunnel and open the door to the shack a little and let Moony stick a paw out or something. I bet Snape will be so scared he'll cry like a baby and pee his pants. And then he might even have nightmares, assisted by the Marauders, of course, and then he'll be so scared he'll leave and Evans can be yours. Though I don't see what's so great about her."

James and Sirius looked thoughtful. "Y'know, Prongs, that just might work," Sirius said and smirked his familiar devil-may-care grin. He clapped Peter on the back. "You're such a cunning sly thing, Wormtail."

Peter shrugged modestly. "Always glad to help a friend, Padfoot. And just think, if Snivellus leaves, maybe your brother will stop hanging out with the Death Eater crowd."

"Yeah, maybe then he'll listen to reason," Sirius said. "We'll get him good, eh James?"

James nodded. It was time for some payback. "It'll be the best prank the Marauders have ever played." He ignored the niggling little voice in the back of his head that whispered that perhaps this prank wasn't such a good idea, that someone might get hurt since Moony wasn't exactly a family dog when he transformed. But he shoved the voice aside and thought instead of how much better Hogwarts would be without Snape in it.

Severus was having a very bad day. He had waited outside the Gryffindor common room for Lily this morning, only to be told by Alice and Cindy that Lily was sick and in the infirmary. He had gone to the Hospital Wing to see her, only to be told by Madam Pomfrey that she couldn't have visitors on account of contracting a highly contagious form of wizard flu. "Maybe tomorrow I can allow you a short visit, Mr. Snape, if I think she is feeling up to it. Now run along and eat breakfast."

 _I'll send her a get-well card as soon as I can make one, and maybe some wildflowers too._ Then he went upstairs only to find that breakfast was almost over and all that was left was some cold toast and lukewarm oatmeal. He ate it anyhow, he never wasted food, but it reminded him pointedly of breakfasts at Spinner's End. Definitely not something he wished to dwell on.

But at least his mother was able to save a decent amount of money and live a more normal life since Tobias was in jail, Severus thought. His latest letter to Eileen had been sent yesterday, and he looked forward to her reply.

History of Magic was his least favorite class, though he didn't know of anyone who actually _liked_ it, but today's lecture was even worse than usual. Sev tuned out Binns as soon as he got started upon telling all the ancestors of the Goblin leaders of the Rebellion of 1874, and began making a card for Lily instead. He was interrupted by Pettigrew throwing parchment balls at him and nearly upsetting his inkwell. Angry, he spun and cast a hex that kicked the chair out from under the sly Marauder, and Peter landed on the floor with a thump.

 _That_ even Binns noticed, and when the ghost professor asked what had happened, Sirius chimed in with, "Snivellus—I mean Snape there hexed him. Saw the whole thing."

"Well, Mr. Snape, we do not hex people in my classroom." Binns snapped. "Now you may have detention with me tomorrow night and ten points off of Slytherin as well." Then he turned and floated back up to the front of the class and continued his excruciatingly boring lecture.

Out of the corner of his eye, Severus saw James and Sirius giving each other a high five. _Brilliant, Sev! Just bloody brilliant! Now you get to be lectured to death by flaming Binns._

And it just went downhill from there.

Professor Slughorn was absent from potions, seemed he had come down with the same wizard flu as Lily, and their substitute, Professor Marsh, declared that anyone without a partner to work on their project could copy over formulas for a Boil Cure for the first year classes twenty times. It was busy work, Severus _hated_ busy work, but he had no choice but to do it, since Lily was absent and Marsh didn't think he could continue the project on his own.

He picked up his quill and started to write, only to have the quill snap mid-word and splatter ink all over.

"Mr. Snape, I would think you ought to have learned to write with a quill by now," reproved the teacher, making everyone else snicker and Severus flushed.

"Yes, ma'am." He ground his teeth together and figured once more the Marauders were up to their old tricks. The quill had been perfectly sound, he had used it to write down his homework in Charms.

He pulled out a spare quill, cast a quick silent Shield spell about himself and his desk and began to write the blasted formula. Even though it wasn't lines, it felt like detention. And what made it worse was that he was doing it in _potions_ , the class he loved and excelled at.

 _Bloody Marsh and her bloody stupid busy work,_ he thought angrily, then saw to his chagrin that he had written that down instead of "porcupine quills" on the parchment and had to start over.

He picked at his lunch, feeling the beginnings of a headache and a sore throat coming on. Reg asked him if he were okay and he muttered a sullen, "Fine."

That afternoon, Regulus had Quidditch practice, which meant he wouldn' t be back till late evening.

By then Severus was feeling hot and sniffly, but he didn't think it was anything to go to the Hospital Wing for. He ordered soup in his room for dinner and brewed up a batch of Pepper Up potion and drank it down. That potion always made him sleepy and so he decided to go to bed early.

No sooner had his head hit the pillow than he was asleep, sinking into a potion-induced dreamworld, which was why he never felt the rat scurry up the side of the bed and perch upon his chest, staring at him with beady eyes.

An instant later, Peter appeared and pointed his wand at Severus, intoning a stronger sleep charm, plus a levitation spell. Then the rat opened the door to Snape's room, silently congratulating himself on pulling it off. He had waited outside the portrait hole, hidden in a pocket of shadow, for one of the Slytherins to come and open it and then he had slipped inside. Snape's room was separate from the others since he was a prefect, and once he had located it by smell, he had waited for Snape to return.

Once he had, Wormtail had followed him, nipping inside the bedroom and hiding beneath the couch. The wards Snape had set did not react to him because he was not intending to harm Severus, only remove him from the room. And thus, Wormtail was able to pull it off. He was extremely grateful that Regulus had not returned yet from wherever he was, for Pettigrew was afraid of the younger Black. Regulus had never liked or trusted him, and viewed him with suspicion.

Wormtail transformed again and went forward to check the way out. Luckily, this was a Friday night and most of the Slytherins were either sleeping, studying in the library, or down at Hogsmead. The coast was clear.

Wormtail carefully draped James' Invisibility cloak over the sleeping Snape and then floated him out the portrait hole and through the secret passage the Marauders had discovered. James and Sirius waited for him behind a large yew tree.

"Did you do it?" asked James.

Peter nodded. "Easy as pie, he took a potion and he's out like a light."

"Good." Sirius peered beneath the cloak and smirked. "Won't _he_ be surprised when he wakes up?"

The Marauders hurried across the lawn, the moon had just risen and Remus was already inside the Shack, transforming.

They never noticed Regulus returning from the Quidditch pitch, sweaty and dirty, who just happened to spot them leaving the grounds. Since becoming a spy, Regulus had been taught by Dumbledore to observe people, namely the way they moved to tell what they were feeling or thinking or going to do next. Reg had absorbed the lessons thoroughly.

_Huh. Wonder what they're up to, slipping off like that? Probably no good from the way they're walking, like they don't want to be seen. Always up to something, you and your pals, aren't you, Siri?_

Shrugging, Regulus returned to the castle, showered and went back to his room, expecting to find Snape studying or something. Instead, he found the door to their suite open and Severus nowhere to be found. "Sev? Sev, what the hell?" he called.

His roommate's bed was rumpled, but he was nowhere in sight. And Regulus knew that Severus would never forget to shut the door to the room, he was far too fanatical about personal privacy.

Fear began to grow in Reg's chest. What if Snape had been discovered as a spy by the Iron Masks and they had dragged him off to curse him? Frightened, Reg cast a Four Points spell. "Point me Severus Snape."

He followed the invisible tugging on his wand, closing the door and spelling it locked as he left the room.

The Four Points spell led Regulus out of the castle and across the grounds in the direction of the Whomping Willow.

His heart hammering, Regulus ran forward, only to halt when he approached the tree, for it was standing with its limbs frozen in the sky, and Reg knew the Whomping Willow was never still, it always twitched and swiped at anything that moved, even an errant breeze. _Merlin, but what is going on here?_ The moon soared cold and bright overhead, and he shivered as he approached the tree, which had a large gaping _hole_ inbetween its roots. _A secret passage?_ The spell tugged him onward and he quickly slipped into the hole and found himself in a long twisty tunnel.

Upon hearing voices, he halted and muttered a concealment spell, then continued.

Up ahead, he saw, to his shock, not some of the Sons of the Iron Mask, as he had expected, but the Marauders. They were standing next to a wooden door, and Regulus saw that it was locked. The Four Points spell was still tugging him and he assumed Severus must be behind that door.

Strange growling and snuffling noises were coming from behind the door too, deep throaty snarls that raised the hair on the back of Reg's neck.

"Sirius, I don't think this is such a good idea anymore," James was saying, a note of uncertainty in his tone. "You know that little alcove room isn't all that sturdy, Moony could break the door from the Shack if he gets desperate enough."

"Oh come on, Prongs. The door to the Shack is bound with iron, he's never broken it yet and we've been in there dozens of times. Snivelly will be fine, if scared to death. And besides, wasn't that the idea?"

"Yeah, Prongs, you're not getting cold feet now are you?" Peter said, a nasal whine to his voice. "I didn't sneak into the snake pit for nothing. Look, he's waking up."

They peered through the window into the small alcove room whose door at one end was bound with iron and padlocked.

Severus woke to a strange howling and groaning. It was terribly eerie, for the screams sounded almost . . .human, Severus realized in horror. The screams of a human in mortal agony, too great to be endured. Abruptly the human shriek cut off and changed to a wolf's long low howl.

He scrambled to his feet, only then realizing he was not in his bedroom, this was not some nightmare. His bare feet scuffed a dirt floor and he was inside some kind of bare wooden room with two doors. Behind one, the horrible howls and shrieks were coming, and then he heard the slow scrape of claws being dragged down the door, followed by a high pitched whine, as of a beast trying to get free.

 _Where am I? How did I get here?_ His hand groped frantically for his wand, only to find that it was not there. He looked down and saw he was only wearing his pajamas and his wand was usually beneath his pillow.

Terror began to creep up his limbs as the awful whining escalated into a howl, the howl of a beast who hungers for what is on the other side of the door. More scrabbling and scratching sounded, then came a thud as of something heavy flung against the door. The door shuddered and Severus heard something crack and the wood began to buckle.

He whirled, and ran to the other door, only to discover it was locked. Frantic, he slammed his hand down on it, yelling, "Damn it, open!"

Then he heard a familiar voice drawl, "What's the matter, Snivellus? Afraid of the big bad wolf?"

"Black?" Sev gasped, and looked up to see Sirius's face through the window, smirking at him. "You miserable bastard, what have you done? Let me out of here!"

"Quit whinging, Snivellus. Or are you a coward like the rest of your House? Slimy snakes slithering in the darkness, only good for corrupting innocent kids."

More howls and cracking sounds came from the opposite door.

Severus glanced back and saw that the wood was splintering and breaking and whatever thing was on the other side of the door was coming through it unless something were done. Desperate, he turned back and yelled, "Black, I don't know what kind of sick prank you're playing at, but you need to let me out—NOW! The door is breaking!"

The wood panel shattered and splinters exploded outward. Severus lifted a hand to shield his face and then froze.

A paw the size of a dinner plate emerged from the hole, with gray fur upon it and yet it had long toes tipped with razor claws . . .almost like a human hand.

Then Severus knew what was behind the door, what was slavering and howling for his blood.

"A _werewolf!_ Bloody hell, Black, you've shut me in with a werewolf! Are you bloody crazy?"

"Aww . . .does Snivelly want his mama?" Sirius mocked.

"Sirius, you demented jackass, let him go!" Regulus cried and raced up the tunnel, wand pointed at his brother.

"Reg, stay out of this. It's nothing to do with you." Sirius whirled to face his brother.

"Bullshit! He's my best friend!"

"Some friend. He lead you into darkness, making you into scum like him."

"You don't know what you're talking about, damn it!" Regulus cried.

"Sirius, this has gone too far," James said abruptly. "I'm letting him out. It's not funny anymore." He pointed his wand and uttered an, "Alohomora."

The door unlocked and James yanked it open.

Severus stood frozen in the middle of the room, unable to look away from the horrible manlike paw that pulled and tugged upon the broken door, widening the gap until a muzzle filled with sharp fangs shoved itself through the hole, drool dripping in streams to puddle upon the floor.

"Snape! Come on!" James cried, half-dragging the other boy towards the door. "That won't hold him for long. Merlin blast it, Moony!"

James's hand upon his shoulder and his words snapped Severus out of the trance he had been in, caught in the aura of fear that a werewolf projected. "Don't touch me, Potter!" he cried, and then his brain registered what else James had said. "Lupin. That werewolf is Lupin!"

James nodded. Then he shoved Severus out the door and shut it, casting every locking charm and shield charm he knew upon it.

No sooner had he done so then there came a terrific crash and the sound of paws clicking across the floor.

THUD!

The door shook as Remus threw his full weight against it.

All of the wizards froze and then James barked, "Up the tunnel, quick! I've cast charms on the door, but it might not hold him the way he is tonight."

Everyone obeyed his authoritative tone without question, even Sirius.

Wormtail raced out of the tunnel and struck the secret knothole with his paw, freezing the willow so they could all escape from the tunnel.

They emerged panting and gasping into the moonlight, wincing as the howls and wails of the trapped werewolf increased.

Once they were safely away from the Willow, Severus spun on the Marauders, hands clenched into fists. "What the bloody hell did you think you were playing at? You nearly _killed_ me!"

"Killed you?" Sirius stared at him. "It was a _prank_ , you uptight viper."

"A prank? Sirius, you stuck him inside a room with a ravening werewolf on the other side." Reg objected. "How stupid are you? He could have died!"

"Merlin's shorts, Reg, all we wanted to do was scare him a bit. We were only foolin'." Sirius protested.

"Oh, and that makes it all right? You abduct me from my room and throw me into a tunnel with a ravening beast and think it's _funny?"_ Severus spat. "Then why are you the only one laughing, Black?"

"Nothing happened. James dragged your arse out of there before Moony ever got through the door. Peter was the one who thought of it."

"You agreed to it, Padfoot," reminded Peter sullenly. "You and James thought it was a wonderful idea."

"You're all a bunch of imbeciles!" Severus cried. "And this time you won't get away with calling this a damn prank and laughing it off. I'm reporting you all to the Headmaster."

Sirius went pale. "Now, wait, Snape, don't be hasty . . ."

"Save the excuses, Black! We'll see what Dumbledore thinks about your little 'joke'."

Severus began half running across the lawn towards the castle.

"Bloody tattletale!" swore Sirius. "James, why didn't you knock him out and _then_ drag him out of the shack?"

James actually looked uncomfortable. "Siri, he is right. We never should have . . .we went too far this time. If Remus had been a shade quicker or stronger, he might have broken free and bitten Snape. And that would have been horrible."

"Do you think we'll get detention for this, James?" Peter whimpered, only now realizing they were in major trouble.

"Detention?" Regulus snorted. "You'll be lucky if you're not expelled." He cast Sirius a disgusted glance. "And if that happens, Mother and Dad will die of shock."

"Ha! Look who's talking. I'm not the only one with a dirty little secret, Regulus! How would you like it if I told them who _you've_ been hanging around with? How many dark curses did you learn this week?"

"Shut up! At least I never almost killed someone as a _joke_!" His brother cried. Then his eyes narrowed.

"But Merlin only knows what you _will_ do, as a Death Eater!"

Regulus marched up to Sirius and snarled, "You know _nothing_ of who I truly am, brother! Nothing! And if you think you're going to scare me by threatening to tell Mum and Dad about what I'm doing, remember that _you_ nearly committed murder tonight! Which one of us would they be more ashamed of—a supposed dark wizard or an attempted murderer?"

"You're blackmailing me?"

Regulus turned away. "Take it however you like. You always do."

"Fine! I'll make you a deal. I won't tell them if you won't." Sirius called after him, not quite as nonchalant as he seemed about incurring his parents' displeasure.

Regulus kept walking.

"Okay, Reg? Okay?"

Regulus turned around. "Deal. But don't blame me if they find out from the Headmaster."

"I don't think he would tell them," Sirius began nervously. "It wasn't like we planned to . . .to hurt him."

"No? Then what would you call it? That wasn't exactly an invitation to afternoon tea, Sirius!"

Shaking his head in disgust, Regulus sprinted the rest of the way to the castle, where he found Dumbledore waiting in the courtyard. "Mr. Black, are you involved in this as well?"

"Involved, sir? No, sir. I'm just out here to help Sev."

"I see. But you witnessed it all. Go up to my office to the special room, please. You will find Severus there, I shall speak to you after I deal with your brother and his friends."

"Yes, sir." Regulus said, and shivered, for there was an ominous tone to the Headmaster's voice that made the young wizard afraid, even though he had done nothing to incur Dumbledore's wrath. _Sirius, I think you're royally screwed. Dumbledore might have looked the other way all those other times, but this time . . ._

He quickly made his way up to the Headmaster's office and to the secret room that Dumbledore had hidden there, it was where Dumbledore took them to discuss their information from the meetings, it was spelled so that no one could hear what was discussed within the room, but you could hear what went on in the regular office. It had been designed when Phineus Nigellus Black was Headmaster. Regulus carefully pressed the hidden panel next to the fireplace and the wall slid aside and he put a finger to his lips when he caught sight of Severus, who still looked disheveled but mad enough to breathe fire.

His friend stepped back and allowed Regulus to enter, the room was about the size of a small dorm room, with a table and chairs inside. When Regulus entered, the panel slid back into place, invisible unless you knew where to put a hand.

"You okay, Sev?"

"Yes." His friend tossed his hair back from his eyes. "Dumbledore said I can stay here until he calls me back into the room. I think he means to make the prats apologize to me, among other things."

"Good. He sounded mighty put out. I don't think they'll be getting off with just a detention this time."

"No. When I told him . . .Reg, he was livid. They're lucky he doesn't believe in using magic to punish students."

Regulus shuddered. "Think they'll be expelled? I don't care what happens to Potter or Pettigrew, just my brother."

"I don't know. Why? Don't you think they deserve it?"

"Yes, but still . . ."

"Sorry. That was an unfair question," Severus sighed. "Your brother might be an idiot, but he's still your brother."

"True enough."

Then they hushed, for they could hear the sound of footsteps on the stairs and then the three Gryffindors and Dumbledore entered the office.

Albus Dumbledore had rarely been so disappointed or angry as he was that night with three of his favorite Gryffindors. The Marauders, as they called themselves, had a streak of mischief a mile wide, but he had been willing to overlook it because most of their pranks were not harmful, at least as far as he had been aware. Then too, he had been a consummate practical joker in his youth, and so had a soft spot for them. But when Severus had come knocking upon the door to his quarters, disheveled and looking as if he had been in a tussle with a dragon, he had known immediately that something was very wrong. Once he had discovered Severus had been the victim of a prank involving a _werewolf_ , specifically Remus Lupin, he had been appalled. Perhaps he ought to have listened to Poppy Pomfrey and Horace when they had told him the boys were going too far and singling out specific students, such as Snape, for targets. But even he had never thought they would stoop to this—to endanger not one but _two_ students!

He indicated that the three were to stand before his desk and he went and seated himself behind it. He had learned a long time ago that students made to stand while he sat grew uneasy and fidgety, though he rarely used such tactics to intimidate students. However, in this instance, he felt a little intimidation was necessary. He fixed the three with a stern gaze, it felt foreign upon his face, until he reminded himself what these three had done.

"Well, gentlemen, it has been brought to my attention that you attempted to play a nasty prank upon Mr. Snape involving another of your classmates, is that true?"

"Yes, sir," they muttered, hanging their heads.

"Ah. Then you admit to placing Severus in harm's way, endangering not only his life, but also Remus's?"

"It . . .it wasn't like that, sir," Sirius spoke up. "We were only foolin', sir. Just trying to scare him a little. We never meant for him to get hurt or anything."

Dumbledore frowned. "Do you realize, Mr. Black, what could have happened from your little joke? If Severus had been bitten by Remus there would have been dire consequences. Severus might have been infected by the curse, making him into a werewolf, and Remus would have been declared a menace and killed by the Ministry."

"Killed?" James repeated in dismay.

"Yes, Mr. Potter—killed! Because the Ministry regards werewolves as not human, they are classed as half-humans and dangerous. I do not agree with that viewpoint, which is why I agreed to let Remus attend school here. But no one was ever supposed to know what he was. And now you have revealed his secret to two other students and almost cost him his life as well! This is no laughing matter, gentlemen!"

"We know that, sir," James said, lifting his eyes from the floor to peer at the Headmaster, trying to gauge how much trouble they were in. He flinched. Dumbledore's eyes were dark with a cold anger, he had never seen the kindly old man look so fierce. _Ah, hells, but we're screwed._ "Like Sirius said, all we wanted was to scare Sniv-I mean Snape. We didn't think it would be dangerous . . .because we've been in that room in the Shack before when Remus transformed and he never went crazy that way. We went too far, I guess."

"Much too far, young man. It is one thing to change a person's hair color for an hour or make his homework fly about the room, but it is quite another to serve a classmate up on a proverbial platter to a werewolf. That crossed the line. How did you manage to get Severus out of Slytherin without being seen?"

"That was Peter's job," Sirius said.

"Well, Mr. Pettigrew?"

"I . . .I . . .err . . .well, you see . . ."

"Just tell the truth, Peter." Dumbledore ordered.

Peter gulped, looked over at his two best mates, then said, "I did it because I'm an Animagus. I can become a rat." He was shaking. "Oh please, sir, have mercy! I don't want to be expelled! My parents will never forgive me." He looked as if he were about to grab Dumbledore around the ankles and kiss his feet.

"That remains to be seen. So, you are an Animagus? That is quite an accomplishment. I assume that your other two friends here are as well?"

Both James and Sirius also admitted that was so and told the Headmaster their forms—a stag and a dog.

"We only became Animagi so we could help Remus, sir," Sirius said defensively.

"You were not even supposed to know about Remus, Mr. Black. His condition is deadly serious, nothing that should be shrugged off or disregarded. And yet that is exactly what you have done by using him as the instrument of your so-called joke. You have all behaved like irresponsible, reprehensible, reckless five-year-olds." He scolded. "Your actions could have resulted in the death of two of your classmates and I am ashamed that you would even consider such a thing, much less actually carried it out." He rose to his feet suddenly and his face took on the mien of a strict judge, or a parent about to deliver some much-needed long overdue discipline.

"I have overlooked much from you three with regards to your penchant for pranks. I have indulged you because I did not think you would truly harm anyone with them. But now it seems I was wrong to do so. No, Mr. Black, I don't want to hear anymore excuses, for there is no excuse for your behavior. Were I any other Headmaster, you would all be expelled for your actions here tonight. However, I cannot do that without revealing the reason behind your expulsion, and then I would be forced to expose Remus and that I cannot do. He is innocent in this, _you_ are not."

"What . . .are you going to do to us, sir?" asked James, trying to keep the quiver from his voice. Dumbledore was quite fearsome when he was angry.

"First and foremost, you will be giving an apology to Severus for almost killing him. Then you will be put on probation for the rest of the year, meaning that all your Hogsmeade visits are cancelled and your movements restricted to class, the hall, and your rooms. You will wear a Monitoring charm upon you, and curfew will be strictly enforced. You will serve detentions with Mr. Filch every other night, doing whatever jobs he tells you. I shall also arrange for you to have Animagus instruction with Professor McGonagall, after which she shall register you with the Ministry. Lastly, since you seem to get into mischief together, you will be separated for classes and meals and any time you do spend together afterwards will be monitored to ensure you plan no more pranks like this one. You are also forbidden to go near Severus Snape or Regulus Black."

"What? You're forbidding me to see my own brother?" Sirius gaped.

"Yes, upon your brother's request." Dumbledore said. "In short, gentlemen, you are grounded, as the Muggles say. I would hope that you take this punishment to heart and learn your lesson. Break any of the restrictions and you will find that I am not adverse to snapping your wand. Have I made myself clear, gentlemen?"

All of them nodded.

Dumbledore pulled out his wand and cast the Monitoring Charm. "You may give your apologies to Mr. Snape tomorrow in my office, and then the rest of your punishment shall begin as well. I shall inform Professor McGonagall that you are on probation from me and what it entails. Return to your dorm, boys, and go to bed. And do think about what you have done." Then he paused and said, "Mr. Potter, I am told that your quick thinking may have saved Mr. Snape's life. You are to be commended for your courage and for your attempt to rectify your poor decision. Well done. However, that does not mean you will get a reduced sentence."

"I understand, sir. And I'm sorry for what I've done. To both of them."

"That is well, for you should be, Mr. Potter."

Sirius and Peter also apologized and then Dumbledore ordered them to go back to their room.

As soon as they were gone, he called, "Severus and Regulus, you may come out."

Severus tapped the release on the secret panel, and it slid open.

The two emerged into the office and Dumbledore looked them over before waving his wand and cleaning them up. "There, much better. I am truly sorry this ever occurred, Severus. However, I must beg your silence on this matter. I permitted Remus Lupin to attend this school because I believed that he should not be ostracized because of a curse he contracted as a baby. I took steps to ensure both his safety and others, by placing him in the Shrieking Shack, and putting the Whomping Willow to guard the tunnel. I ask that you not blame Remus for this, James and Sirius assured me he was not in on the prank, and I believe them, for Remus is not the kind to play jokes like that. Will you both give me your word that you shall keep Remus's secret?"

"Very well, sir." Severus agreed. "But I cannot believe you consented to allow a werewolf here." He shivered, recalling the huge rows of teeth and the claws tearing a hole through three-inch thick oak planks. "He nearly . . .if he could have gotten through the door faster . . .he would have attacked me . . .like a mad beast."

Dumbledore patted Severus's shoulder. "I know. Sit down, Severus. You have had a shock, might I suggest some tea and perhaps a Calming Draught as well?" He walked over to his private store of potions and took out a vial, poured some in a cup and handed it to the young wizard, who took it without protest.

Then the Headmaster called for some tea to be brought and the house elves came with a tray of Sleepytime and all of them drank some.

"Regulus, my boy, will you swear the same oath?"

"I will, sir. And . . .I apologize for my brother. Sometimes he acts like he has no brain."

Dumbledore chuckled. "Yes, well, I think all of us are guilty of that at some point." He peered at Severus. "Are you feeling better now, my boy?"

"Yes, thank you, Headmaster." He finished his tea, it did make him feel less chilled and a sleepy lassitude was starting to overtake him. He yawned. Slowly the fear was leaving him, dulled by the Calming Draught, but Severus was certain he would never forget this night. "And thank you for sticking up for me."

"And why would I not, Severus?"

Severus did not answer, so Regulus did. "Because we're Slytherins and they're Gryffindors and so are you."

"And you think I would favor my own?"

"It's a common practice, sir. Especially when you consider that they're among the most popular boys in the school."

"Yes, I . . .can see where you would have gotten that impression," Dumbledore admitted softly. "As I said before, I have indulged those three too much and for that I am sorry. I fear I have done none of you any favors. From now on, I shall try and treat all of you the same." He met the eyes of his two young agents steadily.

Severus nodded, satisfied. "I appreciate it, sir."

The Headmaster smiled. "Be here in my office at nine, and you shall have your apology from all the Marauders then. For now, get some sleep, children." He gently shepherded them from the office. "Oh, and one more thing. Never think I do not appreciate the risks you take for me, Severus and Regulus. I value you highly and would trust no one else as my eyes and ears."

The two boys left the office, sleepy and weary, but with their heads held high. It felt incredible to know that all of their hard work was appreciated and that the Headmaster valued them enough to lay down the law to his former Golden Boys. Severus smiled all the way back to his room, thinking that what had started out as an utterly awful day and a terrible night had ended better than expected.

As he slid beneath the covers, he wondered what Lily would say when he told her. Finally, there had been justice done for a Slytherin.

**A/N: Before anyone starts screaming "It didn't happen that way in the books" remember this is an AU storyline.**

**I moved the time of the incident up from summer to fall because it fit my storyline better.**

**Hope you liked my version of the Shrieking Shack and its aftermath. And if not . . .oh well.**

**Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed this! The second part with James and Petunia is coming up!**

**Next: James and Lily have it out for a final time before winter break, but James follows Lily home where he will encounter a very different sort of girl than any he has met before.**


	19. Grow Up!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily finds out about the prank--and she is NOT amused.  
> Later, James makes one final last ditch effort to woo her--by following her home to Spinner's End!

Early the next morning, before breakfast had been served in the Great Hall, Severus was standing in Dumbledore's office with the Headmaster beside him, listening to the three Marauders give him awkward yet sincere apologies for almost killing him last night. He was surprised at how good it felt to have an apology from them, to have the recognition that he was worthy of an apology from the oh-so-smug Marauders.

" . . .and well, I'm really sorry, Snape—I mean Severus—we went too far and well, it won't happen again," James finished, managing to look contrite despite the pout that tugged at his lower lip. To his eternal shock, he found he really did mean what he said, he had only intended to prank the Slytherin, to try and make him look like a fool so Lily would dump him, he had never intended for Severus to be in danger, hadn't even considered that he might have been, until Remus had started to break down the door. James shivered. Though he would never admit it, that sight would haunt him forever, and he was glad he had gotten Snape away. He still didn't like the other boy, but he would have never wanted him to die. Especially not like that.

"Apology accepted, Potter," Severus replied and gave him a slight nod.

"Well, I hope you all have learned your lesson," Dumbledore said sternly. "You three still have detention to serve and essays to write, you may start on them after breakfast. Severus, you may go."

"Thank you, sir," Severus said, then went out of the office and down to the infirmary, where Lily was still confined on bed rest.

Madam Pomfrey allowed him to visit with her for a whole half-an-hour, and after he had spent a few minutes holding her hand and hugging her, he proceeded to tell her about what had gone on in the Shrieking Shack, after first swearing her to silence. Lily was both shocked and furious.

"Oh, Sev! You could have died! How could they have done something so . . .so _awful_ , not to mention stupid! Just wait till I can get out of bed and have my wand back. I'll show them a good prank, all right, the miserable bounders!"

"Shhh, Lily!" Severus whispered, though he couldn't repress a grin at the way Lily was so ready to defend him. "We don't want Madame Pomfrey to send me away because I'm making you upset."

"Oh, right." Lily sucked in a breath and composed herself. "But I really want to beat all of them till they howl. Except Remus. Poor thing, it must be terrible to live with a curse like that. No wonder he's so shy and quiet and so withdrawn and sickly as the full moon approaches."

"Lupin is all right. He just has lousy taste in friends," Severus acknowledged. Then he handed her the card he had made her and watched her face light up. "You are so beautiful when you smile, Lily."

"Really? Funny, because I thought the same about you, Sev. When you smile you make my knees go weak."

"Oh? Then I guess I'll have to keep doing that more often," he laughed, then he blew her a kiss, because he wasn't allowed to kiss her for real since she was sick.

But the tender moment was spoiled when Madam Pomfrey stuck her head out of her office and said, "Mr. Snape, visiting hours are up for the morning. Run along now and go eat breakfast. You may return and see Lily again after class."

Biting back a groan, Severus reluctantly bid Lily goodbye, promising to return as soon as he could. "I'll . . .umm . . .bring my homework and yours and we can do it together."

"Aww, Sev! You're sweet." Lily smiled, and blew him a kiss in return."Now I won't have to worry about falling behind."

"Right. See you later and feel better, Lil." Then he was out the door, going to meet Reg for breakfast.

"How is Lily doing?" Reg asked over his plate of eggs and ham.

"She's recovering," Severus said, slowly eating his egg and bacon sandwich. "I told her what happened and she's ready to roast Potter over a slow fire. Sirius too, I think."

Reg smirked. "Good. I'm glad it's not me she's steamed at. She's got some temper, Sev. How do you survive it?"

"I am very careful to not make her mad," his friend admitted. Then he waved his wand and cast a spell of his own invention that would prevent them from being overheard called Muffliato. "Potter thinks that all he has to worry about is Dumbledore's detention. But he's forgotten about Lily."

"Not for long," Reg predicted, and chuckled wickedly. Somehow, he couldn't bring himself to feel sorry for the Marauders at all.

_Two days later:_

James straightened from his crouched position upon the floor, where he had been scrubbing the tiles in the Trophy Room on his hands and knees without magic, part of his detention for nearly killing Snape, as handed out by Filch. Filch, who was often the victim of the Marauders pranks, was only too happy to make Potter, Black, and Pettigrew scrub floors and toilets until their hands fell off. "Bout time the little brats got what was coming to 'em," the steward said, his eyes gleaming in satisfaction. "A bit o' hard work will learn them that it's not all fun and games at school."

Sirius, who was across the room, made faces at Filch behind his back, making James smile even while he scrubbed. At last the floor was finished, washed, buffed and polished. James stood up and rubbed his lower back, which felt knotted, and said to Sirius, "Merlin, but I'm glad that's over with. My back feels like a giant stomped on it."

"Or a werewolf," Sirius remarked, then his eyes widened at the person who entered the Trophy Room.

"You're a riot, Black," Remus Lupin said, his eyes glittering with temper. He looked weary and drawn, as he always did after transforming, his blond hair falling over his ears like a shaggy dog's, it needed to be trimmed again. "That's so funny that I forgot to laugh."

Sirius winced, he could tell that Remus was very very angry, a rarity for the young werewolf, who made an effort to control his temper, and who was normally easygoing and calm. "Moony, let us explain—"

"Shut up, Sirius!" growled Lupin, and for an instant, his warm brown eyes turned a feral yellow. "Dumbledore told me what almost happened—how you put Snape inside the shack with me like a . . .a bloody sacrificial goat! He said I almost . . . _bit_ him," Remus hissed, a look of horror and shame passing over his face. "How could you do that? I thought you were my friends."

"We are your friends, Moony," James began. "It was a prank, we never meant to hurt Snape."

"No? You know what I am, what I can do when I'm under the influence," Remus cried angrily. "I'm not some lady's pet poodle, damn it! I'm _dangerous_! I could have . . .killed him, _killed_ another human being . . .and you would have turned me into a murderer!" He turned away, shaking with the force of his emotions.

"Remus, old boy . . ."James moved to pat his shoulder only to have the werewolf spin about and snarl at him.

"Back off, Potter! I used to think I could trust you but now I'm not so sure."

"Remus, of course you can trust me!" exclaimed James, hurt. "I'm your best friend."

"Some friend, making me nearly kill someone," Remus snapped. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"We weren't," Sirius admitted. "But it was Peter's idea to throw Snape in there. We figured if we could prove Snape a coward then maybe Lily would ditch him and date James."

Remus stared at him. "So that's it. This was all some stupid ploy to get Lily Evans. I should have known. God forbid James shouldn't have what he wants." Remus took a deep breath. "You know what I think? I think that Snape is braver than all of us put together, because he at least never pretends to be something he's not, and Lily's lucky to have a friend who puts _her_ first and not himself."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sirius demanded.

"Figure it out, Black, since you're so bloody brilliant." Remus growled.

"We never meant for Snivelly to get hurt. Hell, we even apologized to the greasy git."

"But did you mean it? And what about me? Don't you think _I_ deserve an apology?" the werewolf asked shortly.

Then he turned and walked out of the room, leaving his two friends staring after him.

"Bloody hell, Sirius!" James swore. "That was so not one of your best ideas."

" _My_ idea? It was Wormtail's, not mine! So blame him."

"I'm blaming all of us. Because we were all at fault." James reproved.

"Don't you start too," groaned Sirius. "Come on, let's go shower and get some lunch. I'm starving." He began to walk towards the doors. "Don't worry. Lupin will get over it."

But James was not so sure.

Remus gave them the cold shoulder all week long, refusing to speak to his friends unless he absolutely had to. Since they were separated during class and mealtimes, James had no time to try and convince Remus to forgive them, because as soon as class was over, Remus left the Gryffindor common room and went to the library or somewhere else that he was forbidden to go to.

And if that were not enough, as soon as she was released from the Hospital Wing, Lily Evans marched up to him and punched him so hard she knocked him flat on his arse right in the middle of the corridor. " _That's_ for Severus, Potter!" she snarled. "Lose your petty vendetta against him once and for all and just grow the hell up!"

James rubbed his jaw, it throbbed and ached like seven hells. He had to admit, Lily had a damn good right hook. "Evans, why are you always defending him?" he managed to say through the pain. "Can't you see what he is?"

Lily approached him, and glared down at him, unmindful of the stares they were getting from other students walking by. "I know what he is, Potter. And he is a better person than you'll ever be."

" _What_? How can you say that? He's a bloody snake, he's a Death Eater wannabe, how can you _want_ to hang around him?"

"I could ask the same of you, hanging around delinquents like Black and Pettigrew. Don't act so high and mighty, Potter. You're no better than anyone else."

"I'm better than Snivellus!" James spat, slowly climbing to his feet, one hand pressed to his jaw.

Lily laughed. "Not in my opinion, Potter. You're nothing but a spoiled shallow bully, a coddled brat who thinks he can charm his way through life because he was born to money and a pureblood Name. Well, I have news for you. Your charm doesn't work on me and actions speak louder than words and yours were . . .reprehensible!"

" _Reprehensible?"_ James repeated. "What the hell does that mean?"

"Look it up in the dictionary! Stay away from me, Potter. And stay away from Severus. Because if you don't, I'm going to hex you like nobody's business. I'm not afraid of you, Mr. Big Bad Marauder. Go and find some bimbo who likes your pureblooded arrogant self and leave me in peace."

"I don't believe this! You actually think he's better than me? A scummy Slytherin who hates everything you are?"

"Severus doesn't hate me, or the fact that I'm a Muggleborn, Potter. He isn't like you, _he's_ never hexed a student for the fun of it, or humiliated them for a laugh in front of the whole school. You think everything you do is a big joke. Well, this time nobody's laughing, Potter. Especially me. One day you'll realize that everything you thought you knew about Severus Snape was wrong and he really is the better man."

"That'll be the day!"

Lily looked at him coldly. "I look forward, James Emerson Potter, to proving you wrong, and watching that arrogant smirk get wiped off your face. There's a lot more going on here than you realize, Marauder!" And with that, she spun about and marched away.

James remained where he was, rubbing his jaw, at a loss for words, for once.

As the weeks went on, and the holidays drew nearer, the Marauders were kept busy serving their detentions and studying for their end of term exams. Because they were so often separated, James had plenty of time to brood over what Lily had said and he found that her words rankled. He didn't like the image she had painted of him—that of the spoiled brat bully who only cared about having a good time. Was that how he appeared to her? To others? He had never really thought about the image he had, since he was well-liked and had plenty of girls interested in him. All except the one he really wanted.

What made matters worse was that he saw Lily with Snape every time he turned around, it seemed. He came out of the library and saw them snogging in the hallway, went out for a walk and there they were holding hands and giving each other dreamy glances. He was surprised they didn't sit at the same lunch table, but at least Lily had some decorum, not to drool over the snake in front of everyone. It made James terribly frustrated and desperate to prove to Lily that he was the right one, and that Snape was no better than a trashy con artist. Whenever he saw Snape with his arms about Lily, it made him long to punch the greasy git's face into a wall, and only the threat of being expelled made him keep his temper.

Sirius could tell James was obsessing and did his best to snap him out of it. "Y'know, Prongs, there are other girls out there." He told him one night while they were in the library, ostensibly studying for Charms. "Evans isn't the only girl at Hogwarts. Maybe you should stop mooning over her and take a look around again. Mary MacDonald seems to fancy you, I've seen her looking a time or two."

James sighed. "You don't get it, Padfoot. I don't want another girlfriend, because none of them are Lily."

"James, you're getting a tad bit obsessed," Remus put in, he had finally started speaking to them again after a whole three weeks of stony silences. "You already told us she basically said for you to get lost, that she prefers Snape, so why don't you just . . .let it go? Why torture yourself over something that isn't meant to be?"

"Because she's wrong, dammit! Snape's playing her for a fool and she's going to end up hurt and—"

"—then you'll be there to pick up the pieces?" Wormtail guessed, smiling slyly.

"Yes!"

"And what makes you think she'll want you then, Prongs?" Remus inquired. "I think it's a lost cause and you should forget her and concentrate on your studies and becoming an Auror. Like Sirius says, there are other fish in the sea."

But James shook his head stubbornly. "I can't do that, Lupin. I'm crazy about her, I tell you. Snivellus will never make her happy, he's a dark wizard for Merlin's sake! She just won't see it."

"Maybe she does see it, James," Remus said suddenly. "Maybe she knows and is trying to save him from himself. Ever think of that?"

"Then she's crazier than I am. Those who walk the Dark Road are lost forever. Nobody's ever returned from there."

Remus frowned. "You don't believe in forgiveness and redemption then?"

James shrugged. "Once a dark wizard, always a dark wizard."

"And once a werewolf, always a werewolf?" Remus demanded sharply.

"Moony, that's different."

"How? I become a raving beast at the full moon, if I could I would hunt down women and children and _eat_ them," Remus hissed, checking to make sure no one else was about. "How is that different from what the Death Eaters do?"

"Because they chose it and you didn't," Sirius put in.

"Don't I? Sirius, when I shift, I still have a part of my own mind. I might be crazed with hunger, but I can still think. And I think all the time about eating people." Remus's face was twisted with anguish. "All the time. That night . . .when you put Snape there, we were only separated by a flimsy wooden door . . .and I could smell and practically _taste_ him . . .and I nearly went totally feral . . .all I wanted was to rip and tear him open . . .you can't imagine what that's like . . .if the door hadn't been there I would have done it . . .I would have . . .and what's worse, I would have _liked_ it . . ." Remus's voice was a harsh rasp. "So you see, I know what it's like to have darkness within you and to have to fight against it."

"What's that got to do with Snape?" asked James gently.

"Because maybe Snape's fighting against it too," Remus stated. "And Lily's helping him, like you helped me. So that's why I think you should leave them be, James. She obviously cares for him a great deal, maybe even loves him. I think you should stop thinking about what _you_ want and start thinking about what _she_ wants instead."

"But what she wants isn't good," James argued.

"For you. But this isn't just about you. You should at least try and see her side of it, mate."

"No! Then I'll lose her and I'm not going to let that happen."

Remus cast him a look of exasperation. "You're too stubborn, Potter. Ask yourself this—why do you want her? Is it because you like her as a person or because Snape has her and your pride's hurt by being shown up by a Slytherin with shady acquaintances? Think about it, Prongs. But in the meantime, you need to finish your Charms homework." The prefect tapped the other's blank parchment pointedly.

James and Sirius both glared at him. Then they stopped talking and began to write.

_Dec 17th, 1975_

Snow blew softly about the train station as the students boarded, going home for the Christmas break. Most of them were muffled from head to toe in long coats and scarves with their House insignia on it and hats and earmuffs. James watched jealously as Lily hopped on board the Express, laughing and joking with Severus and Regulus. Her emerald eyes sparkled like rare jewels in the morning sun and her fiery hair whipped about her face, haloing her like a medieval angel in a DaVinci painting.

He bit his lip hard, trying to control the surge of desire and jealously that bubbled up from within him whenever he chanced to see the two together. His obsession with the red-haired witch had grown worse as the term had gone on, until now it raged like an inferno within him. He truly did regret nearly killing Snape in the Shrieking Shack and had learned his lesson about taking a prank too far, but a tiny corner of his heart couldn't help wishing that Snape would die, thus freeing Lily and allowing him to court her.

He followed after the three friends, dragging his trunk up the steps and into the compartment he usually shared with the other Marauders. Sirius was chatting to Remus about how boring his holiday was probably going to be, since at home he had to obey all of his parents tiresome rules. "Maybe I'll come spend Christmas at your house, Prongs. Your folks won't mind, will they?"

James shook his head, his mind was still filled with Lily. "No. You know they consider you like a son to them, Sirius. Come and spend the holiday at the manor, if you want."

"Can I come too?" Peter asked, not wanting to be left out. "My parents will be working and won't even be home most days."

"Sure. You want to come too, Moony? We'll make it a Marauders Christmas," James invited.

"I would like to, but with the full moon coming up . . .it's best if I stay home," Remus declined. "But thank you for the offer, James. Maybe next time."

"You're welcome, mate." James said, not letting on that he was rather relieved that Remus wouldn't be there, because he would try and talk him out of his latest scheme to win Lily back from Snivellus.

As he had boarded the train, a crazy idea had come to him—so crazy that he hardly dared to contemplate it. He was going to follow Lily home and try and talk to her again. Maybe in a more informal setting, she would be willing to listen to him. Of course, it meant he would have to fly unseen after her, but James didn't mind. He loved flying and was curious to see what a Muggle neighborhood looked like.

He quickly pulled Sirius aside while Remus was in the bathroom on the ride to King's Cross Station, and explained his plan. Sirius, who loved insane ideas like that, was all for it. "You go, James. I know you can do it, mate. You're worth ten of Snivellus any day of the week."

"Damn right I am!" declared James passionately. "Just tell Remus and Peter that I had an emergency and had to go home quick. Then I'll follow Lily in her car and wait till she's alone and we'll talk."

"Sounds like a good plan. Good luck!"

James smiled smugly and sat back in his seat, counting the hours till the train pulled into King's Cross.

About three hours later, they had arrived, and James managed to get his things together and find his house elf, Bilbo, on the platform. "Tell Mum and Dad I'll be going out to dinner with Sirius, okay? Here's everything except my broom."

"Yes, Master James. I will inform them directly," Bilbo bowed and then took his trunk and vanished.

James mounted his broom, cast a few concealment charms, and hovered, watching to see where Lily was.

He spotted her hugging a tall man and a rather plump woman with the same shade of red hair, obviously her parents. To his shock, he saw Snape standing next to them, and also receiving a hug from Mrs. Evans and a friendly clap on the shoulder from Mr. Evans. _Bloody hell, but they know him and they seem to like him. Wonder if he cast a Friendship Charm on them or something?_

He watched as they all went through the wall and followed. Mr. Evans led the way to a blue car, and all of them got into it, even Snape. Only then did James recall that Snape lived next to Lily. The car started and James followed.

At first it was easy to tail them, since there weren't many cars like that at the station so late in the afternoon. The weather had turned chilly and snow was starting to fall again, obscuring James' vision a little. He wished he'd brought his Quidditch goggles.

Snow spat in front of his eyes and he had to keep brushing it away, squinting, he spotted the blue car making its way down the road. He followed, grateful that no Muggle seemed inclined to look up too often. He wished he could cast a warming charm on himself, for the air was so much cooler that he was quickly becoming chilled even through his heavy coat and scarf.

Twice he lost the car due to heavy traffic, but found it again about ten minutes later. Hunched over his broom, he doggedly flew all the way to Yorkshire, until they reached the town of High Bentham and turned down the narrow cobbled way to Spinner's End. James rubbed his frozen hands together and watched longingly as the Evans' and Snape got out of the car.

"Care for some hot cider or cocoa, Sev?" asked Mrs. Evans, stamping her feet on the mat.

"Thanks, but I need to get home. My mum will be waiting for me." Severus replied, his voice slightly muffled by the striped silver and green scarf he wore. He took his trunk out of the boot of the car. "Thanks again for picking me up."

"You're welcome, luv! Stop by any time!" She gave him another hug.

"I'll see you later, Lily," he said and hugged her.

"Bye, Sev. Tell your mum I said hi, okay?" She kissed him lightly and then released him.

James ground his teeth. Just the sight of them kissing made his blood boil.

Snape turned and made his way down the sidewalk to the next house on the street, where he let himself in with a key.

As soon as his rival was gone, James skirted the property, trying to find somewhere he could land and wait until Lily was somewhere alone so he could speak to her. He noticed there was a tree house in the backyard in an old oak tree. He landed and quickly climbed up the rope.

The little tree house was a bit of a tight fit, but James managed to wriggle his way inside. His head just brushed the ceiling, and he felt like Hagrid must feel, trying to sit down beside the old crate that Lily and her sister must have used as a table. He found an old blanket inside another crate, it was cold, but once he wrapped it about himself, it warmed and soon he fell asleep, worn out from the flight and the cold.

He woke to the sound of voice raised in a quarrel, one of them a boy's and the other a girl's. "I told you and told you, I will not go out when you're like this!" the girl cried angrily. "You're drunk and I don't date walking beer bottles!"

James sat up so quickly he rapped his head on the ceiling. _Huh? Sounds like Lily and Snape are having an argument. And he's drunk? Ha! I knew he was no good._

James quickly squirmed out of the tree house entrance and half-climbed and half-jumped down to the ground. He raced around the corner of the house, it was now full dusk and the first stars had just come out to play. The ground was covered with a light dusting of snow, enough to make the trees and shrubs sparkle. James wasn't paying attention to that though. He was more concerned with what was going on in the drive.

He could see a girl being pressed up against the side of a cherry red convertible, a tall boy was holding her there and yelling, "You can't tell me what to do, Petunia! It's your fault I had one too many, since you're so frigid you won't show a guy a good time!"

James paused, his brain slowly registering that this wasn't Lily. This had to be her sister, Petunia, he had heard Lily speak of her often enough to Alice and Cindy. And it appeared that she was being harassed by someone . . .a boyfriend, perhaps?

He stopped trying to analyze the situation when he saw the tall boy draw his hand back and slap her across the face. Then he reacted, jumping on top of the bigger boy and dragging him off Petunia, who was half-crying and struggling to get away.

**A/N: I know, another cliffie! But that's because the next chapter is going to be the start of part two of the story, which will be the new unlikely relationship between James and Petunia, the second major pairing of this book. Yes, Sev and Lily will still be in here, so don't worry.**


	20. Petunia's Knight In Shining Armor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Petunia is rescued by a most unlikely boy

**Part Two**

**The Other Evans Sister & the Pureblood Auror**

**20**

**Petunia's Knight in Shining Armor**

Petunia knew it had been a mistake to answer the door when she saw it was Vernon on the other side of it. She hadn't seen him in months and had refused all of his telephone calls, hoping that he would get the hint that it was over and leave her alone. No such luck. Then he had started writing her letters, which she had returned unopened with a big _Return To Sender_ scrawled in red across it.

But he had been shivering in the cold and so she had opened the door, intending to tell him good day and wish him a good holiday. "Petunia, I need to talk with you," were the first words out of his mouth.

"Vernon, I have nothing more to say to you. It's all been said," she began.

"No, please, Pet. I . . .I came to tell you that I want you back." He began, and then he had yanked her out the door. "C'mere, by the car. I don't want your nosy parents or sister listening in on our private conversation, luv."

"Vernon, let me go!" she had cried, but she was no match for his strength. "Lily's gone out with Severus, and my parents would never listen in on a private conversation. Why don't you come in and have a cup of tea and some scones?" She tried to entice him with food, which had always worked before. Vernon had a hearty appetite.

"Later. First listen to me," he crooned, and as he leaned towards her to give her a sloppy kiss, the scent of spirits hit her nostrils.

"Ugh! You've been _drinking_!"

"So? Helps warm me up. It's cold as a witch's tit out here." He hauled her up against the car and pressed his mouth down on hers. "C'mon, baby, lemme show you a good time. Remember, I always showed you a good time." His lips ground into hers and she gasped.

"Stop it! You're _hurting_ me!" She beat on his chest. But it was no use, he was like a walking mountain of lard. The smell of his aftershave mingled with the smell of beer and made her sick to her stomach.

"Aww, don't be like this, Pet." He fumbled drunkenly at her blouse, trying to undo the buttons. "I came over to take you out to dinner and the cinema."

She smacked his hands down. "I told you and told you, I will not go out when you're like this!" Petunia cried angrily. "You're drunk and I don't date walking beer bottles!"

"You can't tell me what to do, Petunia! It's your fault I had one too many, since you're so frigid you won't show a guy a good time!"

Next thing she knew he had slapped her hard across the face and she banged her head against the car. Before she could draw breath to scream for help, a tall dark-haired boy suddenly appeared from out of nowhere and hauled Vernon off of her by the back of his collar.

"Oi, didn't your mother ever teach you how to treat a lady?" growled the newcomer, spinning Vernon about and glaring at him from behind black-framed glasses.

"What? Now listen here, you, this ain't none of your concern! This's a private conversation!" slurred Vernon, yanking free of the taller boy's hold. "Go home and mind your own business."

James's eyes narrowed. "I asked you a question, mister," he drawled, using the aristocratic haughty tone that always irritated Snape to no end. "Where I come from, men don't raise a hand to a lady."

"Like I give two shits," Vernon growled. "But out, boy, b'fore I teach you some manners."

"I'd like to see you try, you drunken lout," James laughed mockingly.

Vernon swung, putting the full force of his two hundred and twenty pounds behind the blow.

It never connected.

James danced away, using his Quidditch-honed reflexes to dodge Vernon's haymaker.

Vernon's fist whistled overhead, missing James' head by a good foot.

"Clumsy and stupid," sneered the wizard. "Let me show you how it's done." Then he circled and jabbed a punch right into Vernon's stomach.

"Ooof!" the bigger boy doubled over and James gave him another punch in the eye. He had learned while scrapping with Snape how to hit and then move away, and now, faced with a boy twice his size and many pounds heavier, James appreciated the unofficial lessons in fist-fighting Snape had given him.

But Vernon was built like a pint-sized elephant, and soon recovered from the blows and charged James, slamming into him like an express train and knocking the lighter boy down.

They scuffled on the ground while Petunia looked on, her face blotchy, holding a hand to her burning cheek, wondering if she should call her father or just let the two scrap. In the end, she decided to wait and only summon her parent if it looked like her rescuer was getting the worst of it. She had longed for someone to give Vernon a good thrashing ever since the summer.

Vernon's fist impacted with James's lip, and he winced as his lip promptly split open. He jerked his head back, but not quick enough to avoid the other punch Vernon landed in his left eye. Pain exploded in the side of his face and he heard the familiar _crack_ of his glasses breaking, but he refused to cry out. Vernon laughed and James thought desperately, _Got to get the fat bugger off of me, his weight's smothering me by inches._

But before he could try and aim a kick at the obese teenager, Vernon brayed and stepped off of him, drawing a foot back to kick the smaller boy in the ribs.

James rolled away, however, and the kick only grazed him.

 _Oh, get up, please, whoever you are!_ Petunia found herself nearly biting her nails as the dark-haired rescuer avoided Vernon's foot and scrambled to his feet. _Now give it to the bounder!_

James was panting, but still full of fight, his temper was raging, for he detested men who hurt women, physically or otherwise. And this bully, he sensed, was one of the worst of that sort. Keeping his head down, he moved in quick, as if he were trying to score a goal in Quidditch, and then he snapped his hand out in two quick jabs, hitting Vernon once in the nose and the other in the mouth.

The older boy staggered backwards with a howl, blood spurting all over him.

"Had enough, you sodding bully?" he demanded, ignoring the trickle of blood down his own face. "Or shall I give you some more?"

Vernon was snuffling and whimpering, but too stupid to know when to quit, and he tried again to tackle James into the snow beside the walk.

But this time James was prepared and stuck out a foot, Vernon landed belly down in the snow, his fat bum sticking up like the proverbial pig in a poke.

The young wizard smirked and gave the other a hard boot in his fat arse, making him squeal like the pig he resembled. "Take that, you bloody coward! That's what you get for hitting a lady."

Vernon scrambled up, dripping blood all down his expensive jumper, spat out a tooth and came at James, windmilling his arms, trying to connect with the quicker boy.

It took James four more good ones to knock the last of the fight out of Vernon, but finally he had the other boy down and his arm bent behind his back, making him yelp. "Had enough?"

"Yes! Oww! Yes! Ahh! Please, don't break my arm! Arghh!"

"I _should_ break your arm. Or maybe your fingers," James said, tugging a bit on the other's arm.

"No-o-o! Please! Mercy!" Vernon blubbered.

"Apologize to the lady, you fat bastard," ordered James, turning Vernon to face Petunia.

"I . . .I'm sorry! I'll never do it again, Petunia!" Tears and snot were dribbling down Vernon's face.

Petunia grimaced. "That's right, you won't. Because next time you set foot on my property, Dursley, I'm calling the police. Now get in your car and go home, before I have you arrested for assault."

James manhandled him to the car, opened it, and half-shoved the wheezing Vernon inside. "Get going, and if I ever see you around here again, I'll do worse."

"Don't touch me, you daft bugger! I'll have you up on charges, I will!" Vernon blustered.

James laughed. "I think the . . .police will lock you up before they do me, after what you've done. Get, you tosser!" he slammed the door almost on Vernon's hand.

As Vernon peeled out of the drive, Petunia turned to James and said, "Are you hurt badly? Thank you for coming to my rescue like that."

"I'll live." James said gallantly. "He hit you harder than he did me."

"I doubt that, since you're all over blood," Petunia said wryly. "I'm sorry, we've not been introduced. I'm Petunia Evans."

"James Potter." He gave her a lopsided smile.

She found herself smiling back at him, he had come dashing in just like a white knight in a fairy tale, although right then he looked slightly the worse for wear, with his bloody lip and eye and cracked glasses. "Oh, dear, your glasses!"

"Don't worry. I can mend 'em," James said, and took them off and tapped them with a finger, muttering, " _Occulo Reparo!_ " He slipped them back on his head. "There! Good as new!"

"Why, you're a . . .a wizard!" Petunia exclaimed. "Like my sister and Severus."

"Yes, I go to school with them," James admitted. "Matter of fact, that's why I was here, I was coming to see Lily."

"Really? Was she expecting you?"

"Uh, no. It was sort of a . . .spur of the moment thing."

"Oh. Well, she's not at home, she and Sev went out to see _It's A Wonderful Life_ at the cinema. Lily loves that movie." Petunia said. "I'm glad you showed up though, James."

"So am I. I can't abide a man who hits women."

"Why don't you come inside and let me fix up your face, you look a fright. Although Vernon looked worse," she giggled softly.

"Bloody bounder!" James swore, then he flushed. "Sorry, I shouldn't swear in front of a girl that way."

Petunia arched an eyebrow. "Thank you for considering my feelings. It's kind of old-fashioned, but I like it." She led the way inside the house.

Ten minutes later, James was seated at the Evans' kitchen table, his hands in a bowl of ice water, they were bruised and scraped, and his face being tended expertly by both Polly and Petunia.

Petunia's parents had been shocked and outraged when they caught sight of their daughter with a livid handprint on her cheek accompanied by a bloodied stranger. Henry had immediately threatened to grab a gun and shoot Vernon's balls off. "That'll teach the bugger to lay a hand on _my_ daughter."

"Harry! For goodness sake!" Polly sputtered. "Don't you go off half-cocked now. I don't want you to end up in jail like Severus's father. He's not worth it, and besides, this young man thrashed him quite soundly." She patted James on the shoulder. "While I don't normally approve of violence, in this case, it was deserved." She handed James a cloth filled with ice. "Hold that on your lip, dear, it'll keep down the swelling."

He took the ice pack, but hesitated before applying it, saying softly, "Did I hear you right, ma'am? Snape's father is in prison?"

"Aye, and hopefully he stays there," Polly said darkly. "Nasty chap. Drunken bum. Hurt his wife, poor thing, and Severus too. Mostly Sev though, beat the stuffing outta him, and finally Eileen got sick o' it and called the police and they arrested the rotten bounder."

James gaped at her. _Sniv—Snape was abused by his father? Holy Merlin! Guess that's why he was always so scruffy looking or whatever._

"Mum, please! I'm sure Severus wouldn't like you talking about him that way to someone we hardly know," Petunia objected, knowing how touchy Severus was about his home life.

"Oh, dear. I _have_ put my foot in it," Polly sighed, her quick tongue tended to run away with her. "Still, you'll keep quiet about it, won't you, lad? You go to school together so you ought to know what's up, ey?"

"Yes, Mrs. Evans." James said quickly. "I won't say anything." What was most shocking was that he meant it. He wouldn't even tell Sirius about what he had learned. It made him feel almost . . .sympathetic to Snape. He quickly placed the ice pack on his lip. _There are things about Severus Snape that you know nothing about._ Lily's words to him last time he had spoken to her floated into his head and he wondered if that fact—the fact that Snape's father was a nasty abusive drunk who beat up his wife and kid—were one of the things Lily had meant.

"Tilt your head back a bit, dear," Mrs. Evans said. "I need to see how bad that cut is above your eye." She gently brushed the teen's messy mop of hair away from his forehead and began gently sponging the blood away from his eyebrow. "Hmm. Doesn't look like it'll need stitches. You were lucky, James."

"Stitches?" he repeated, wondering what on earth they were.

"Not to worry, the cut's not that deep," Polly reassured him. "I can put some sticking plaster on and it'll hold together."

 _Until I'm home and my mum can heal it,_ James thought, but did not say aloud, not wanting to be rude.

"Best clean it first, though. You never know where Dursley's hand has been." Polly joked, reaching for a brown bottle and a gauze pad.

" _Mother!_ " Petunia gasped, going red. Then she chuckled wickedly. "Isn't it the truth, though."

"Keep still, lad. 'Twill sting, but it needs to be cleaned," Polly warned before applying the cloth soaked in peroxide to James' eyebrow.

"Ow!" he hissed, gritting his teeth. It stung, though no worse than an antibacterial potion, he thought after a moment, and Mrs. Evans was very gentle.

Five seconds later his eyebrow was taped and he was sipping a cup of tea while alternating between that and the ice pack, for the tea stung his lip, but he enjoyed tea and so endured the discomfort.

Across from him, Petunia nursed her own cup of tea and held an identical bag to her cheek. Their eyes met and James was startled to feel a sudden surge of attraction to the blond-haired girl, as well as a wave of protectiveness.

Petunia did not have Lily's beautiful emerald eyes or auburn hair, nor her younger sister's curves, but she was not unattractive. Her hair was a medium blond, not too pale or too golden, but just right. And she was slender, with high cheekbones, and a lively mouth and her eyes were a spectacular blue, like cornflowers. Her chin was a bit angular, but it gave her character, he decided. From what he had heard Lily say about her sister, she was stubborn and opinionated, but also loyal and smart, with a rather wicked sense of humor, and a sharp tongue if you happened to get on her bad side. She was also eighteen to Lily's fifteen, three years his senior as well. Strangely, that knowledge did not intimidate him.

_She's got pluck. Most girls that had been attacked like that would've been bawling their eyes out on their mum's shoulder. And she did cry a bit, but not for long and now she's even got spunk enough to joke about the slimebucket. I like that in a girl._

He had liked that quality about Lily as well, he realized, but he sensed that Petunia was not as independent as Lily, and wouldn't mind a strong arm to lean on once in awhile. The way she had looked at him after he had thrashed that slob Vernon . . . all starry eyed and awed, well he had not had a girl look at him that way in some time and he had missed it.

"Ahem!" Henry cleared his throat and both young people turned to look at him. "Mr. Potter, I'd like to thank you for saving Tuney from that rotten thug Dursley. Would you like to stay for dinner? Polly was expecting Lily and Sev to be here, but they decided to grab a bite down at the diner in town instead. We would like it very much if you'd stay, Polly's making her famous herbed chicken and roasted potatoes and creamed asparagus and cinnamon buns for dessert."

"Strawberry trifle, dear," Polly corrected. "Tuney made it."

James's eyes lit up. "That sounds delicious, sir. I'd be honored."

"Good! It's settled then." Henry said, pleased. "Do you have to call home and tell your parents where you are?"

"Already did that, sir. I told my . . .manservant I'd be having dinner at a friend's house," James replied smoothly, unsure how much the Muggles knew about wizarding customs, such as house elves.

Henry raised an eyebrow. "Servants, eh? Are you titled then, Mr. Potter?"

"Um . . .no, not in the way you mean. I'm not a lord or anything, just a pureblood wizard from a Founding family."

"What's a Founding family?" asked Petunia.

"It's a family who can trace their antecedents back to the great Merlin," James answered. "My family is one, and most purebloods have at least three or more descendants of Merlin's line in their family tree."

"How many do you have?" Polly asked.

"Four," James replied. "The Potters married well. My mother, Liana Bones, is from a Founding family too, one of the oldest."

"And these . . .Founding families, are they considered upper crust?" Henry asked, he could tell from the boy's accent and clothes, despite the blood staining them, that he was well off. He spoke like a toff, and generally that sort irritated plain Henry Evans, but this one had saved his daughter and so he was willing to overlook it, especially since the boy had been polite and not sneering or condescending the way Vernon had been.

"Yes, I suppose so. Some purebloods, well they think they're better than . . .um . . .Muggleborns, like Lily, but my family has never been like that," James hastened to reassure the older man. "Lily is one of the strongest witches of our generation, so it just goes to show that being a pureblood isn't everything."

"Right you are," Henry nodded in approval. "Where do you come from, James?"

"My family has an estate near Harrogate, I grew up there, though we also have a townhouse in London."

"Ah, another northern Yorkshireman." Henry smiled. "You've not the accent though."

"That's because of my grandmother, sir. Grandmama insisted I learn to speak the Queen's English properly, with none of this northern burr nonsense, as she put it. She used to whack my knuckles with her fan if I forgot," James admitted with a rueful grin. "Eventually I stopped forgetting." She had also threatened to hex his tongue to silence as well, but he didn't see why he should tell them that. It would probably alarm them, being Muggles.

"Are you an only child then?" asked Petunia curiously.

James nodded. "You mean Lily never told you about me?"

She shook her head. "No, she never mentioned you."

"Oh," James was unsure whether to be relieved or insulted. He decided it was better that they knew nothing about him, or else his warm reception might be cut short. And he was quite looking forward to dinner. "Well, we're in the same House at school, Gryffindor, so I thought she might have mentioned something about me or one of my friends. I play Quidditch at school, I'm a Chaser, has she ever mentioned anything about sports?"

"No, but I like a good game of football or cricket," Henry said. "Is it like one of those?"

"Well . . .you see, you play it on broomsticks and fly . . ." James began explaining his favorite pastime to Henry, his hazel eyes sparkling.

Petunia was quietly observing him over the rim of her teacup, thinking how boyishly handsome he looked compared to her former boyfriend. Vernon had been decent looking, if stocky and lately he had gotten portly, but he had never been a looker the way James Potter was, with his near-black hair and carefree smile and the face of a devilish rogue. _Be careful, Tuney, this one could be dangerous,_ her conscience whispered. _You could fall for this one if you let yourself, and the last thing you need is to get involved with a wizard. It's best if you stick to your own kind._

But a traitorous corner of her heart whispered that there was no law that said she had to date a . . .Muggle, as wizard called ordinary humans. And after the experience she had had with Vernon, who was as ordinary as you could get, she wasn't too eager to involve herself with another of his kind again. But James . . .James had rescued her, just like a knight in shining armor, defeating the wicked ogre who had attempted to carry her off. So perhaps he was safe. She stifled a giggle. Here she was, mooning over a boy who was three years younger than she, still a schoolboy, for heaven's sake! And yet . . .he really was very handsome . . .almost like a movie star . . .and he didn't seem at all stuck-up. Unless he was only putting on a good front, the way Vernon had done.

 _I'll wait and see,_ she decided. By the end of dinner, she would have a better picture of him. You could tell a lot about a man by the way he ate and how appreciative he was of those who had cooked the meal.

She finished her tea and rose to help her mother prepare dinner, leaving her rescuer and her father discussing that weird magical sport Quiddark or whatever it was called. Men! Magical or Muggle, they were all sports mad!

The herbed chicken and potatoes and asparagus was excellent, James told Polly after he had eaten two helpings. "Usually I don't like asparagus, Mrs. Evans, and don't really eat vegetables unless my mother makes me, but your asparagus tastes great."

Polly beamed, she took great pride in her cooking. "Thank you, dear, glad I made a convert. Harry never ate much veggies either till he married me. I can give you the recipe to take home to your mum if you'd like."

James nodded, thinking this meal beat even those Annabeth and Prixley, his mother's and father's house elves, prepared back at Potter Manor. "That would be capital, Mrs. Evans."

"And just wait till you taste Tuney's strawberry trifle," bragged Henry. "It's the best in all of Yorkshire."

Petunia blushed. "Now, Dad, I'm no gourmet chef."

"No, you're better," her father insisted, reaching out to gently touch her cheek where Vernon had hit her. The swelling had gone down some, but he could tell she would have a bruise tomorrow. "Miserable bastard!" he muttered. "He ought to be locked up in the same cell as Tobias Snape."

Polly nodded, her eyes hard. "Bad upbringing."

"I'd say so," agreed James, sipping the fizzy drink Petunia had called Coke. "Guess his father never taught him how to treat a lady. My father was never what you'd call strict, but one thing he did insist upon and that was to never be rude or hurtful to a girl. Once when I was seven, I was playing with my cousin Amelia and I got mad because she beat me in Exploding Snap—that's a wizard card game—and I called her a cheating hag and pushed her into a mud puddle. When my father found out . . .he was mad enough to spit fire. He took away my broom for a week and gave me a good paddling, the only time he ever did that, now that I think about it. And then he made me say sorry to Amelia." Then he blushed, wondering what on earth had prompted him to tell _that_ story, of all things?

"Bet you learned your lesson though," Henry said sagely.

"Yes, I did." James said sincerely. _I couldn't sit down for nearly a day afterwards, but it was the disappointment in his face that hurt worse than my bum. I never wanted him to look at me like that again._

"If someone had done that to Vernon when he was growing up, maybe he would have learned not to treat women like dirt," Petunia said angrily.

"Maybe he would have," Polly said, giving her a hug. "But either way, you're well rid of him, Tuney. Would you all like tea with your trifle?"

The trifle was just as good as Henry had said, and James nearly felt like licking the bowl after he finished the last spoonful. "This was the best trifle I've ever eaten. You should enter a cooking contest, Petunia. I'm sure you'd take first prize."

Now it was Petunia's turn to blush. Vernon had never praised her humble cooking skills this way. "Thanks, James. I'm glad you liked it."

He grinned back at her, his eyes sparkling mischievously. "Who wouldn't?"

They spent a pleasant half-an-hour longer discussing various topics, and they introduced James to the telly, which he found fascinating, and kept asking how people moved and talked inside of it if it wasn't magical. Henry attempted to explain about video recorders and such, but wasn't sure James got it. But all too soon it was half past eight and James bid the Evans' farewell.

Petunia walked him to the door. "I'll tell Lily you stopped by."

"Please do. And . . .if you ever need rescuing again . . .you can call me."

"Is that a promise, Mr. Potter?"

"It is," he said.

"Maybe I ought to call you Sir James then," she teased.

"Sir James," he chuckled. "Like a white knight. I like it." He bowed to her then, and picked up her hand and kissed her palm. "Alas, my Lady Petunia, I must bid you good night."

She giggled at his whimsy, trying to conceal how his playful kiss had made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. "Farewell, sir knight. Perhaps I might see you again anon?"

"If my lady wishes."

"Milday does," Petunia said earnestly. "How about Saturday next?"

"Are you . . .asking me out?" he asked, astonished.

"Yes. Why? Is it not done that way in the wizarding world?"

"Um . . .yes, it's just . . .I'm surprised you'd want to go out when we've only just met."

"You had dinner with me and my family. And you comported yourself like a gentleman." She bit her lip. "I thought . . .You came here looking for Lily. Is it because you want to date her then?"

"I . . .no . . . well, sort of . .. but she's taken, isn't she?"

"Very much so. She's been dating Sev since the summer and they've always been together, ever since they were little. He's always fancied her and she's always adored him."

James took a deep breath. "Then it seems I should look elsewhere. Would you be so kind as to go out with me, Petunia Evans?"

Petunia looked thoughtful. "I will. So long as you don't expect me to be my sister, James Potter. Lily and I are two different people, best you realize that straight away," she told him sternly. "Or else you can forget it."

He met her eyes squarely. "Understood."

"Good. Saturday next, then?"

"Fine with me. You can send me an owl . . .uh, I mean, Lily can . . .I can send Orpheus to you and you can send me a letter, will that be all right?"

"Does the owl bite? Or make a mess all over?"

"No, Orpheus is well trained," James said hastily. "He would never bite or . . .leave droppings anywhere. We teach our post owls well, lady. Just leave a window open Saturday morning and Orpheus will deliver my letter to you and wait for a reply. Oh, and if you could feed him a bit of buttered toast, he likes a treat after he brings a letter, kind of a reward."

"I can do that. What sort of owl is he?"

"He's a barn owl. I got him as a birthday present when I was ten."

"A barn owl! Oh, they're so adorable! I love their heart-shaped faces!"

James laughed. "Yeah, he's adorable, all right." _Kind of like his master._

"Well then, I'll await your owl, sir. Good night."

"Good night, milady Evans," James sketched her another bow and then turned to go.

Only to run smack into Lily, who was just returning from her date with Severus.

"Potter! What are _you_ doing here?"

"Uh, I was just leaving," he began.

"Not so fast," Lily put out a hand. "What are you doing here at my house? How did you find out where I lived?"

"I . . .followed you, okay?"

Lily's eyes flashed. "Why? Plan on trying to talk some sense into me? Try to convince me not to see Severus?"

"I . . .might have been thinking that . . .but . . .I've realized that would be useless. Your sister explained a few things to me."

"He rescued me from Vernon, Lily." Petunia put in.

"What?" Lily stared at her sister. "Whatever do you mean, Tuney?"

"What I said. James was waiting for you and he saw Vernon hit me and he dragged him off and walloped him good and proper."

"You did that for my sister, Potter? For a Muggle? How come?"

"Because it was the right thing to do." James said. "Look, I'd love to stay and chat, but my mother is probably waiting up and pacing a hole in the carpet waiting for me to get home. Talk to Petunia, Lily. She'll tell you what happened. Goodbye, Lily. Petunia, look for my owl on Saturday."

Then he beat a hasty retreat out the door, retrieved his broom and turned towards home, after activating the charm built into the broom that would guide him back to the Potter estate, ensuring he could never become lost, since that had happened once when he was a little boy and gone flying alone without permission.

 _Oh, Merlin! I hope she still wants to go out once Lily tells her what an arse I was to her during school. Damn and damn!_ Never before had he ever regretted his past actions the way he did now, and never had he ever worried about a girl rejecting him based upon his reputation. He had always assumed Lily had refused his advances because of Snape, not because of anything he had done to drive her off. But now he was worried and he discovered he did not like the feeling at all. He heaved a sigh and flew faster, he would just have to hope for the best and see what she replied next Saturday. _If_ she replied.

**So, how did you enjoy James' confrontation with Vernon? I really liked giving him what he deserved!**

**Did you like the meeting with the Evans?**

**Just so you know, Harry is a nickname for Henry, and Polly often calls her husband that.**

**What do you think will happen next? Will Petunia agree to go out with James after Lily talks to her?**

**One final note: Though this part of the story focuses mainly on James and Petunia, Sev and Lily will still be in it, as will Regulus and the rest of the Marauders.**


End file.
